Make an Impact: 15 Ways People Can Change the World Today

By: Author Valerie Forgeard

Posted on Published: September 11, 2023  - Last updated: September 12, 2023

Categories Writing , Society

In a rapidly evolving world teeming with challenges—from climate change and social inequality to political unrest—it’s easy to feel like the odds are stacked against us.

However, history has consistently proven that change is possible and often driven by ordinary individuals with extraordinary determination. Whether it’s Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat, Malala Yousafzai advocating for education, or a local hero making a difference in their community, people from all walks of life have the power to enact meaningful change. But how can you, yes you, contribute to this legacy?

In this guide, we’ll delve into practical, attainable, and transformative ways people can change the world, one action at a time. So, if you’ve ever felt that yearning to make an impact but needed to know where to start, this is your roadmap to becoming an agent of change.

Key Takeaways

  • Individual actions, no matter how small, can have a significant impact on the world.
  • Education plays a crucial role in creating positive changes and fostering global development.
  • Technology and digital platforms can be powerful tools for driving social activism and meaningful change.
  • Social entrepreneurship, advocacy, and community action are effective ways to make a real difference in local and global communities.

15 Ways People Can Change the World

Change is not just a buzzword; it’s a call to action that echoes in the hearts of people who want to improve the world .

While the task may seem daunting, remember that monumental shifts often start with individual acts. Every action counts, from harnessing the power of education to making sustainable choices.

Whether you want to make a local impact or dream of broader global change, these 15 suggestions offer a concrete starting point for anyone eager to make a difference.

1. Advocate for Education

Partner with organizations that aim to improve access to quality education in underserved areas. Your time or financial donation can make a huge difference in a child’s future.

2. Go Green

Adopt an eco-friendly lifestyle by reducing waste, conserving energy, and supporting sustainable practices. Even small changes can contribute to a healthier planet.

3. Volunteer Locally

Spend time helping out at local shelters, food banks, or community events. Your hands-on involvement uplifts your community.

4. Mentorship Matters

Offer your skills and experience as guidance for young people or peers. A little guidance can go a long way in helping someone reach their potential.

5. Amplify Voices

Use your platform, no matter how small, to amplify the voices of marginalized communities. Speak up and speak out to drive social change.

6. Get Political

Become an informed voter, and encourage others to do the same. Your vote can shape policies that have a wide-reaching impact.

7. Support Mental Health

Advocate for mental health awareness and resources. Your openness and advocacy can break down stigmas and improve well-being.

8. Fundraise for a Cause

Use your network to raise funds for charities or initiatives that you’re passionate about. Money can often directly translate to change.

9. Corporate Responsibility

If you’re part of a company, encourage responsible business practices like sustainability and fair wages. Businesses have a big role to play in societal change.

10. Innovate for Good

Use your skills in technology or innovation to solve social or environmental problems. Innovation is the cornerstone of progress.

11. Promote Fair Trade

Purchase and promote fair-trade products to support ethical business practices globally. Your buying power can encourage responsible commerce.

12. Art as Activism

Create or support art that sends a message about pressing world issues. Art can be a powerful tool for change.

13. Foster Community Building

Organize or participate in events that bring your local community together, fostering unity and collective action.

14. Encourage Healthy Living

Advocate for or educate others about healthy living. Physical well-being often leads to greater community productivity and happiness.

15. Travel Responsibly

When you travel, respect local cultures, environments, and economies. Your respectful curiosity can serve as a model for others.

Understanding the Power of Individual Actions

E Person Planting A Tiny Seedling In Dry, Barren Earth, With A Vibrant, Flourishing Forest In The Background, Showing The Transformation Through Individual Action

It’s crucial to realize that every person’s actions, no matter how small, can have a significant impact on the world. This is the power of Individual Influence.

Your daily choices, your Personal Innovations, they all contribute to shaping our global society. Research shows that simple actions like reducing waste or advocating for social change can ripple outwards and create substantial shifts.

By recycling one plastic bottle, you’re not just reducing landfill; you’re part of a larger movement towards sustainability. Your voice matters in creating policies and promoting justice as well.

The Role of Education in Global Change

 Globe Surrounded By Diverse People, Each Holding A Different Educational Symbol (Books, Graduation Hats, Microscope, Etc

You’re about to delve into a valuable discourse on the profound impact of education on bringing about change.

As you navigate through this exploration, consider how global changes hinge significantly on the role of education and how it’s leveraged.

In essence, grasp the power that lies in empowering change through education, understanding its potential as a tool for societal transformation and your part in harnessing it.

Education’s Impact on Change

Through education, you’re able to gain knowledge and skills that can significantly contribute to making positive changes in the world. However, education inequities persist globally, creating a barrier to this potential for change.

It’s proven that diverse learning styles benefit from tailored teaching methods. But not everyone has access to such personalized instruction due to economic disparities or institutional biases.

By addressing these inequities, we could unlock untapped potential and foster global development. Investment in inclusive education is crucial in leveling the playing field and empowering individuals towards societal transformation.

Global Change: Education’s Role

On a global scale, education’s role in societal transformation can’t be underestimated as it empowers individuals to make significant contributions. You’re part of this change when you advocate for educational equality and curriculum diversification.

Consider the following images:

  • A world where every child, regardless of their background, has access to quality education.
  • Classrooms filled with diverse learning materials that reflect various cultures and histories.
  • Teachers equipped with inclusive teaching strategies that cater to all learners.
  • Communities collaborating to ensure that schools are safe spaces for learning.
  • Governments investing significantly in education reforms.

Educational equality and curriculum diversification aren’t just buzzwords; they’re key elements driving global change. Be an active participant in making this vision a reality by supporting initiatives aimed at transforming education systems worldwide.

Empowering Change Through Education

In your journey towards becoming an agent of empowerment in education, it’s vital to understand that every step you take has a ripple effect.

Education accessibility and curriculum reform are two significant areas where your influence can create waves of change. By advocating for equitable access to quality education, you’re ensuring that no child is left behind due to socioeconomic constraints.

Moreover, pushing for curriculum reform means introducing learning content that reflects the diversity and richness of our global society. It’s not enough to merely teach; fostering critical thinking, encouraging inclusivity, and promoting innovation should be integral parts of the educational framework.

Harnessing Technology for Positive Change

 Diverse Group Of Hands Holding Up Various Technological Devices, Radiating Beams Of Light That Merge Together To Form A Brighter, Greener, Healthier Globe

In today’s digital age, you’re in a unique position to leverage technology in driving social activism and fostering meaningful change.

Various digital platforms can be harnessed as powerful tools to amplify your voice, spread awareness, and mobilize action for causes you care about.

Consider how tech innovations are revolutionizing advocacy efforts globally—when used strategically, they could potentially redefine the landscape of social activism.

Tech in Social Activism

Tech is playing a crucial role in social activism, enabling people to connect and mobilize for change like never before. Activism Apps are redefining protest safety and democratizing the fight for justice.

  • Apps like Signal providing encrypted communication, keeping protestors safe.
  • Social media platforms serving as rallying points for change.
  • Crowdfunding apps fueling causes with necessary funds.
  • Mapping tools helping activists coordinate on-the-ground efforts effectively.
  • Citizen-reporter applications ensuring transparency by documenting events in real-time.

You’re no longer just a bystander; you’re an active participant shaping your world. Tech’s not only amplifying voices but also protecting those bold enough to speak out.

The digital age of activism is here, harness its power wisely.

Digital Platforms for Change

Digital platforms for activism aren’t just about spreading the word anymore; they’re tools for organizing, strategizing and making a real impact. They’ve become indispensable in promoting Digital Humanitarianism and facilitating Virtual Volunteering.

You might be wondering, “How exactly do these platforms make a difference?” Let’s break it down:

These are only examples. There are countless more platforms out there that you can leverage to effect change. So don’t underestimate your power as an individual on these digital platforms – you can help drive significant societal transformation.

The Impact of Social Entrepreneurship

You’re making a real difference with your social entrepreneurship, impacting both local and global communities. Despite the social enterprise challenges you face, your entrepreneurial resilience pushes you to create impactful solutions.

Consider these realities:

  • Poverty reduction initiatives driven by socially conscious businesses.
  • Employment opportunities for marginalized groups crafted by visionary leaders like yourself.
  • The environmental sustainability projects initiated by green enterprises.
  • Educational programs funded through business profits.
  • Health care services delivered in remote areas thanks to innovative models.

These are not just hopeful possibilities; they are actual outcomes of dedicated social entrepreneurship. You embody the potential to transform society, even when faced with adversity.

Advocacy and Activism: Catalysts for Change

Ize A Diverse Group Of People Planting A Lush, Green Tree, Their Hands On The Trunk, Symbolizing Unity

Advocacy and activism are powerful catalysts that drive societal transformation. They cannot be underestimated. Grassroots movements, in particular, are potent tools of advocacy. You witness the power of collective voices, influencing policy changes or pressuring corporations to act responsibly. Research proves that such movements often start small but snowball into major forces of change.

Now let’s talk protest strategies. They’re not just about marching or picketing; they involve strategic planning and coordinated efforts for maximum impact. You’ve seen how social media has transformed protests, enabling global reach and instantaneous mobilization. But remember, it’s the message that matters most – clear, compelling narratives can ignite action and sway public opinion.

The Influence of Art and Culture

Art and culture cannot be overlooked when discussing influences that shape societal perspectives and values. These elements hold immense power to change the world. Imagine a society without artistic censorship, where freedom of expression is unchained:

  • Art prompts discussions on relevant subjects.
  • Literature challenges traditional norms, encouraging critical thinking.
  • Music inspiring unity through shared emotions felt in every beat.
  • Theatre reflecting society’s mirror, awakening consciousness about prevalent issues.
  • Architecture preserving cultural heritage while adapting to progressive designs.

Cultural preservation is equally critical; it roots us in our history and shapes our identity. You must realize that art and culture are more than simple pastimes or hobbies – they catalyze societal evolution.

Stand against artistic censorship, advocate for cultural preservation because these are ways you can change the world.

Environmental Stewardship and Its Global Effects

It’s crucial to understand how your actions impact the environment and contribute to its preservation for future generations. You can take part in building a green economy, which aims for sustainable development without degrading the environment.

It’s not just about recycling or saving energy at home; it’s about changing consumption patterns and promoting Sustainable Agriculture.

By supporting local farmers who implement eco-friendly methods, you’re investing in a healthier planet. Research proves Sustainable Agriculture can increase biodiversity, improve soil quality, and reduce water usage.

Your role in this green economy isn’t insignificant – every effort counts.

You possess the power to change the world through conscious choices. Let’s be responsible stewards of our environment today for a better tomorrow!

The Importance of Responsible Consumption

 Diverse Group Of People Thoughtfully Choosing Eco-Friendly Products In A Bustling Market Full Of Various Goods, With Visible Recycling Bins And Reusable Bags

You’re at the threshold of understanding the profound impact of responsible consumption on our planet. It’s not just about what you buy, but how and why you buy it.

Impact of Responsible Consumption

By choosing to consume responsibly, you’re making a significant impact on the world. Your decisions can stimulate change in market trends and promote sustainable practices. Consumer psychology plays a critical role here; each purchase is a vote for the kind of world you want to live in.

  • You encourage green marketing efforts which prioritize environmental concerns.
  • You help reduce waste, lessening the strain on our landfills.
  • You support ethical labor practices and fair trade.
  • You contribute to preserving natural resources by opting for reusable or recycled products.
  • Your choices influence manufacturers to adopt more eco-friendly processes.

You have the power to drive transformative change towards sustainability. So remember, your wallet is a weapon, wield it wisely!

Promoting Sustainable Buying Practices

Promoting sustainable buying practices isn’t just about making eco-friendly choices, it’s also about influencing others to do the same. Your choices can have a massive ripple effect, particularly in areas such as sustainable fashion influence and green travel impact.

Consider these three key aspects:

Influence is powerful; you’re not just one person making a change, but an agent pushing for broader societal shift. So next time you make a purchase or plan a trip, think sustainably – it’ll make more of an impact than you might believe.

How Philanthropy Contributes to World Change

Through philanthropy, you’re making a huge difference in the world by contributing to important causes that can lead to significant changes. By supporting Charitable Trusts and Non-Profit Organizations, you’re fueling initiatives that offer educational opportunities for underprivileged children, provide healthcare services to marginalized communities, advocate for environmental conservation efforts, promote social justice and human rights issues, and drive research and innovation in technology.

These contributions don’t just alleviate immediate needs; they create sustainable solutions to ongoing global challenges. Your philanthropic endeavors are not only about giving money; it’s a commitment towards building a better world. So continue investing your resources wisely—it’s how you’re affecting change on a larger scale.

The Power of Community and Collective Action

You’ll discover that the role of community is not only instrumental but pivotal in driving world change.

Collective action’s impact, when harnessed appropriately, has the potential to bring about significant and meaningful transformations in society.

In this discussion, you’ll be persuaded by research findings unveiling how communities through collective actions can indeed be game-changers in our quest for global improvement.

Community’s Role

In changing the world, it’s essential to acknowledge the vital role that communities play in initiating and implementing sustainable changes. Your involvement in community development can bolster grassroots initiatives that bring about significant transformation.

Consider these areas where your participation can make a real difference:

  • Local education programs: You could support literacy initiatives or youth mentorship.
  • Environmental efforts: You might participate in cleanup campaigns or conservation projects.
  • Health and social services: You have the capacity to contribute to food banks, homeless shelters, or medical aid drives.
  • Community infrastructure improvement: Your input can enhance public spaces like parks and libraries.
  • Advocacy groups: Lend your voice to causes you’re passionate about.

Collective Action Impact

Don’t underestimate the power of collective action. It’s capable of producing substantial impacts in your local area and beyond. There’s strength in numbers and when utilized effectively, it can usher transformative changes.

Protest strategies are an integral part of this process. They’re not just about creating noise or causing disruption, but more importantly, they serve to highlight issues that are often overlooked.

Consider the labor union influence on employee rights. Research shows that unions have led significant wage increases and improved working conditions. They’ve managed to sway legislation in favor of workers’ rights, directly resulting from their unified stand against exploitation.

Using Social Media for Advocacy and Awareness

Harnessing social media’s power, we can raise awareness and advocate for change on a global scale. You’ve seen the dark side of it—Social Media Dystopia; fake news, disinformation, privacy breaches. But remember, every tool is dual-edged.

Think about the Influencer Impact:

  • Global reach: Messages spread to millions in seconds.
  • Powerful visuals: Images that pull at heartstrings and demand action.
  • Real-time updates: Immediate news from ground zero.
  • Personal stories: Raw experiences making issues more relatable.
  • Collective action: Organizing strikes or donations within hours.

You’re not just a passive consumer; you’re an active participant! It’s time to leverage this potential for good. Let’s move beyond dystopia and create a utopian vision where social media drives meaningful change. Your voice matters—use it wisely.

The Change Brought by Scientific Innovations

While harnessing social media for advocacy can ignite change, it’s pertinent to pivot our focus towards scientific innovations. They’re not just game-changers; they’re world-changers too.

You see, the power of innovation is intrinsic in shaping our future and with it comes a critical component—innovation ethics. It’s time you considered this: how do we ensure that these technological advancements are ethically sound?

The answer lies in your hands. By fostering ethical responsibility in innovation, you can help forecast a future where technology serves humanity, not threatens it. So let’s advocate for responsible innovation today for a safer tomorrow.

Volunteering and Its Impact on the World

It’s remarkable how volunteering can significantly impact communities everywhere, fostering unity and empathy among individuals.

Consider the following:

  • Participating in disaster relief efforts where you help rebuild homes ravaged by storms or wildfires.
  • Engaging in sustainable agriculture initiatives to combat food insecurity and climate change.
  • Teaching literacy skills in underprivileged areas, empowering people with knowledge.
  • Organizing community clean-ups to preserve local environments.
  • Offering your professional expertise pro bono to support local businesses or charities.

These examples reflect just a fraction of ways you can contribute.

By volunteering your time and energy, you’re not only changing lives but also shaping a more inclusive, resilient world.

The Role of Health and Wellness in Society’s Transformation

Having acknowledged the impact of volunteering, let’s now shift our focus to a critical driver of societal transformation: health and wellness.

When you advocate for healthcare accessibility, you’re not just helping individuals; you’re reshaping society. Lack of access to healthcare is a barrier that hinders progress, but by breaking it down, we can foster healthier communities and stronger economies.

Similarly, mental wellbeing plays an equally pivotal role. A society that values mental health encourages open dialogue about these issues, reducing stigma and fostering empathy. Through research and policy changes, we can create environments where everyone has the opportunity to thrive mentally.

Political Engagement and Its Influence on Change

We’re now turning our attention to the realm of political engagement and its monumental influence on societal transformation. You’re part of this transformation, and your voice matters.

  • Your involvement in election reforms can shape the trajectory of governance.
  • Policy influences are driven by your perspectives and demands.
  • Actively participating in political events brings your concerns to the forefront.
  • Advocacy for legislative changes pushes society forward.
  • Your vote is a powerful tool for defining societal norms.

Through voting and voicing opinions, your active participation can affect election reforms. By asserting policy influences, you help mold society’s future.

The Ripple Effect: When Everyone Does Their Part

The dream of a better world is not an unattainable fantasy; it’s a possibility that grows nearer with each individual act of kindness, courage, and initiative. If every person took even one of the steps outlined in our guide—whether advocating for education, supporting mental health, or championing sustainability—we’d accelerate towards a future where global challenges become relics of the past.

Change isn’t just the responsibility of world leaders or philanthropic giants; it’s a mantle we can pick up. When everyone does their part, no matter how small it may seem, the cumulative effect can be staggering. A single drop can create ripples in a pond; individual actions can create waves of change that make our planet healthier, fairer, and more compassionate.

So don’t underestimate the power of doing your part. Your contribution could be the catalyst that inspires others to join the cause, setting off a ripple effect of positive change that transforms communities, nations, and, ultimately, the world.

If I Could Change the World Essay: Examples & Writing Guide

To write an engaging “If I Could Change the World” essay, you have to get a few crucial elements:

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  • What? How? Whom? When? Where?
  • The essay structure that determines where each answer should be;
  • Some tips that can make your writing unique and original.

Let us help you a bit and give recommendations for “If I Could Change the World” essays with examples. And bookmark our writing company website for excellent academic assistance and study advice.

  • 🗯 What Would You Change?
  • 💁‍♂️ How Would You Do It?

👉 Whom Would Your Changes Affect?

⏱️ when would you change the world, 🌎 where would you make changes, 📦 out-of-the-box thinking, 🤔 deep understanding, 🧠 an intelligible structure, 🗣️ excellent language.

  • 📝 Essay Example

✏️ Change the World Essay FAQ

🔗 references, 💡 if i could change the world essay: essential questions.

What do you think about the world we are all living in? The vast majority of people love their lives, being human, and living on the Earth. They may have no time to think about the world around them or notice that this world requires changes.

And do you have time to notice this? Do you believe that our world is no longer the best and safest place to live in? If you do and have some suggestions on how our world can be changed, you can write a good “If I Could Change the World” essay.

Start crafting your paper by considering these questions:

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If I could change the world essay questions.

Answering them will boost your imagination and help with outlining your essay. Besides, you may find something new about yourself and your mind.

🗯 If You Could Change the World, What Would You Change?

What do I want to change in the world? Start this essay with those particular things that you believe require fixing. We are sure you will not have difficulties with this point because the problems we face these days seem endless.

We’ve gotten used to having such problems, and many people are sure that nothing can ever change. But what if millions of people became more conscious and decided to make even a minor effort to solve just one problem? In that case, we would already live in a better place.

For example:

Why not mention global warming or air pollution? There are plenty of problems common to humanity that require our intervention, so essay writing about global issues is also a great opportunity to narrow down your topic.

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Use your imagination and describe your great ideas in your essay about changing the world for better. You could build up a fantastic paper—or maybe even change the world.

💁‍♂️ How Would You Change the World?

What ways do you think would be the most effective to make necessary changes? Whose help might you need? You have to speculate, “How can I change the world?” for the essay.

You’ll have to use your imagination here again:

  • Delve deeper into the topic. List the ways, methods, or strategies you’d utilize to help the world we live in.
  • Make a list of these people or organizations.
  • Explain how they could contribute to achieving your aim.

For instance, you could consider involving global charities or celebrities to assist you on your path to a better world.

Would your changes influence society in the world? Or some particular groups of people would need them more than all the others?

Get an originally-written paper according to your instructions!

This is another exciting idea that you could develop in your essay. Give insight into whose lives your actions would change. For example, you could think of improving the lives of poor, hungry children in Africa or helping animals suffering from global warming.

Do you think that the problems you are talking about require immediate solutions? There are issues worldwide that can’t wait any longer and need to be changed urgently.

Why not discuss them?

Here’s an idea: Bring up a topic related to a pressing global health issue. For example, focus your main point on incurable diseases or infectious diseases that annually kill more than 17 million people .

In what part of the world would you change something?

It’s essential to touch on the location of your global changes. Are you audacious enough to implement your great ideas worldwide? Or would you be better off starting in a small area and eventually growing it into something on a larger scale?

Consider these ideas as well, and don’t forget to mention the location in your paper.

You can also read our article on world peace to learn more about current problems and issues that require changes.

✒️ If I Could Change the World Essay: Writing Guide

What are the criteria that guide your professor when evaluating your “If I Could Change the World” essay? Are there any one-size-fits-all characteristics you can safely incorporate to end up with a breathtaking paper?

There are! And knowing them will help you write more convincing essays that earn better grades.

If I could change the world essay tips.

Representing your original thinking as an author doesn’t mean that you have to invent something new or discover some unknown theory. Not to discourage you, but chances of doing that are pretty small.

Try writing a “changing the world” essay different from other students’ papers because of its original approach . You could look at things from an unusual angle or come up with a new hypothesis. Even the purpose of your writing can differ if you add creativity.

Your “If I Could Change the World” essay topic is a platform for unlimited imagination and original thinking. Go ahead and make the most of it!

A perfect essay about the world’s problems—just like any other essay—shows in-depth knowledge. Demonstrate the comprehension of all the facts, concepts, and issues you’re talking about. You also need to clearly understand why these ideas matter, both to you and your reader.

To end up with a fantastic “changing the world” essay, you should do the following:

  • Craft and polish a persuasive thesis, stating your position clearly.
  • Find credible sources to add quotes and value to your writing.
  • Use engaging, relevant facts for your arguments and central hypothesis.
  • Consider and analyze different viewpoints.
  • Summarize and synthesize data from various sources.
  • Double-check information that you’re uncertain about.
  • Write a reference list at the bottom of your essay.

Don’t forget to analyze and consider all points of view and include quotations from reputable sources.

The first and foremost thing to bear in mind when outlining your essay is that it should answer the following three questions:

Also, a high-quality essay contains all of the necessary parts of an academic paper:

  • Introduction : Starts with a hook that grabs the reader’s attention. Directs the reader, identifies the focus, and provides the context of the issue. Most importantly, it includes a thesis statement. If you struggle with this part, try to make use of a thesis statement generator .
  • Main body : Provides the argumentation for your thesis and supporting details. Includes quotes and other data that you’ve gathered. Every paragraph starts with a topic sentence and ends with a concluding one, tying the text together.
  • Conclusion : Restates and develops the thesis and summarizes the arguments. Gives the last impression on the reader, leaving the final thoughts in the concluding sentences. May include a call for action.

Your “If I Could Change the World” essay should have a consistent discussion and a balanced argument. Relevant facts and data should support all the points. The conclusion weighs your evidence and provides your final opinion about the paper’s central idea.

Your discussion should be smooth and effortless so that your readers feel like they are in safe hands. The sentences should be flowing naturally and logically from one to the other. The reader should understand everything from the first read. Do not deviate from your topic, or else the focus of your essay will be lost.

You should strive for flawless grammar, spelling, and punctuation, without mistakes or typos. To ensure its flawlessness, proofread your paper or ask someone to do it for you.

If I Could Change the World: Essay Topics

  • Can one person change the world?  
  • What can we do to eliminate the global violence?  
  • How I would change animal rights and welfare laws .  
  • Helping homeless people is a critical task for humanity.  
  • Becoming a social service assistant is the best way to change the world.  
  • Creativity can change the world and make it a better place to live in.  
  • If I could change the world, I would destroy nuclear weapons.  
  • Can courage change the world when the cost is so great? 
  • We need to stop climate change to save the world.  
  • What I can do to save the world from global warming .  
  • The things I would do to eliminate gaming addiction from the world.  
  • I would save the Earth from destruction by making hanges in an energy crisis.  
  • Why we should pay more attention to the overpopulation problem .  
  • Fighting inflation and unemployment is a way to change the world.  
  • What I can do today to help integration of children with special needs . 
  • Elimination of smoking will change the population’s health for the better.  
  • If we want to save the Earth, we should reduce air polution .  
  • The best career choice to change the world. 
  • If I could change the world, I would improve the humanity and nature relationship .  
  • The most important thing I would change about this world is the disease prevention level .  
  • Combat the growing trend of obesity to improve health in the community.  
  • Should we ban consumable plastics to save oceans wildlife?  
  • Using electric vehicles instead of gas cars will improve people’s life quality.  
  • Removing domestic violence and abuse is the thing I would do to change the world.  
  • What I would change to create an ideal society .  
  • Becoming a teacher is my way of improving schooling for young learners .  
  • How I would change the economic situation in modern Latin America.  
  • My plans on banning experiments on animals .  
  • Preparing effective tools to change the children’s world. 
  • We need to change the system to remove health disparities .  
  • What I would do to change the situation with alcohol abuse in the world.  
  • Racism is the global issue that requires an immediate change.  
  • The things that can be done to change the level of substance abuse among adolescents.  
  • If I could change the world, I would remove gender inequality from it.  
  • The solution to social problems within educational institutions is the change we should make in this world.  
  • What changes can we make to overcome the world poverty? 
  • Why it’s important to resolve the global water crisis .  
  • The solution of immigrant problems is a step towards a better society.  
  • How eliminating corruption will make this world better. 
  • What can I do to help resolve the problems of older adults ?   
  • Lowering crime rates will change the world.  
  • How I would change the situation with indigenous Australians.  
  • Preventing and curing breast cancer is one of the greatest concerns in modern society.  
  • What can we do to prevent disease outbreaks?  
  • Why the problem of school violence requires our immediate attention.   
  • How I would change the food distribution to combat the issue of world hunger .  
  • Why we should promote renewable energy sources.  
  • Terrorism is the most urgent problem in modern society.  
  • What would I do to change the situation with school bullying?   
  • What should we change in the world to resolve the problems of LGBT people? 

📝 If I Could Change the World: Essay Example

In this section, you’ll find an essay example on the topic. The downloadable PDF version is under the preview. Hope it will inspire you to write your own If I Could Change the World essay!

If I Could Change the World: Pros and Cons (Essay Example)

The idea of having a tremendous influence on the course of the world history is rather tempting since it implies huge power and the availability of any resource possible. Thus, the possibility of changing the world might be perceived solely as a positive concept at first. However, without the ability to encompass and understand the global implications of the changes that I would make, I would take the actions that would most likely result in the suffering of multiple people, which is why the described scenario is highly undesirable.

Now that you know a little more, it’s easy to come up with even more “If I Could Change the World” essay topics. Just think about them carefully or surf the web for some inspiration.

Thank you for reading till the end! Leave your comment in the section below. Share the article with friends who also have to write an “If I Could Change the World” essay.

Further reading:

  • World Peace Essay in Simple English: How-to + Topic Ideas

It is a paper that deals with a controversial question “Can we change the world” (or similar). There are many ways to develop this topic: from telling about a person, invention, or idea of speaking about skills for changing the world.

To be concise within such a broad topic might be a challenge. One strategy might be to think about who or what in human history has changed something in society a lot. It might be an invention, a politician, a scientist, etc. Then, focus just on that subject.

There many ways to change something, both negatively and positively. If we do not care about ecology, we ruin the world’s biosphere. If we do our best to stay eco-friendly, we make it a better place. We can also change the world with the help of education, science, medicine, etc.

If you do not like the topic you are given, there are always ways to divert from it. Meanwhile, you will formally keep it the same. You can, for example, start by introducing a correlated idea. Then, write about that idea and its connection to the topic.

  • One Person Can Change The World
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Hey, Julia! Really appreciate your efforts And amazing and useful information has been provided. Just a suggestion: if you would write a sample essay for more clear understanding. But, anyway, it was great and time-consuming reading. Thnx, dude??

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Custom Writing

Thank you for your kind words about the blog, Marylou! I’m glad it was helpful.

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Essay “if you could change the world”: what would you do and why?

Very nice essay about the world B-)

Julia Reed

Hi Pragati! Are you writing an essay on this topic? Did you find the article helpful or you need additional help? Always happy to answer 🙂

  • climate change

How ‘Urgent Optimism’ Can Save the World

Earth Day Diversity

I used to think optimists were naive and pessimists were smart. Pessimism seemed like an essential feature of being a scientist: the basis of science is to challenge every result, to pick theories apart to see which ones stand up. I thought cynicism was one of its founding principles. Maybe there is some truth to that. But science is inherently optimistic too. How else would we describe the willingness to try experiments over and over, often with slim odds of success?

Scientific progress can be frustratingly slow: the best minds can dedicate their entire lives to a single question and come away with nothing. They do so with the hope that a breakthrough might be round the corner. It’s unlikely they will be the person to discover it, but there’s a chance. Those odds drop to zero if they give up.

Nevertheless, pessimism still sounds intelligent and optimism dumb. I often feel embarrassed to admit that I’m an optimist. I imagine it knocks me down a peg or two in people’s estimations. But the world desperately needs more optimism. The problem is that people mistake optimism for “blind optimism,” the unfounded faith that things will just get better. Blind optimism really is dumb. And dangerous. If we sit back and do nothing, things will not turn out fine. That’s not the kind of optimism that I’m talking about.

Optimism is seeing challenges as opportunities to make progress; it’s having the confidence that there are things we can do to make a difference. We can shape the future, and we can build a great one if we want to. The economist Paul Romer makes this distinction nicely. He separates “complacent optimism” from “conditional optimism.” “Complacent optimism is the feeling of a child waiting for presents,” Romer wrote. “Conditional optimism is the feeling of a child who is thinking about building a treehouse. ‘If I get some wood and nails and persuade some other kids to help do the work, we can end up with something really cool.’”

I’ve heard various other terms for this “conditional” or effective optimism: “urgent optimism,” “pragmatic optimism,” “realistic optimism,” “impatient optimism.” All these terms are grounded in inspiration and action.

Read More: 13 Ways the World Got Better in 2023

The reason pessimists often sound smart is that they can avoid being “wrong” by moving the goalposts. When a doomer predicts that the world will end in five years, and it doesn’t, they just move the date. The American biologist Paul R. Ehrlich—author of the 1968 book The Population Bomb —has been doing this for decades. In 1970 he said that “sometime in the next 15 years, the end will come. And by ‘the end” I mean an utter breakdown of the capacity of the planet to support humanity.” Of course, that was woefully wrong. He had another go: he said that “England will not exist in the year 2000.” Wrong again. Ehrlich will keep pushing this deadline back. A pessimistic stance is a safe one.

Don’t mistake criticism for pessimism. Criticism is essential for an effective optimist. We need to work through ideas to find the most promising ones. Most innovators that have changed the world have been optimists, even if they didn’t identify as one. But they were also fiercely critical: no one picks apart the ideas of Thomas Edison, Alexander Fleming, Marie Curie, or Norman Borlaug more than they did themselves.

In particular, if we want to get serious about tackling the world’s environmental problems, we need to be more optimistic. We need to believe that it is possible to tackle them. And if we do, we can be the first generation to achieve a sustainable world.

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The Last Generation is an activist group in Germany, the name implying that our unsustainability will push us to extinction. To force their government into action, some of the group went on a month-long hunger strike in August 2021. It wasn’t a half-hearted effort: several ended up in hospital. They’re not the only ones who feel this way. The global environmental group Extinction Rebellion is also founded on this principle. And the studies show that the notion of us being the ‘last generation’ isn’t far from the minds of many young people.

But I’d like to take the opposite framing. I don’t think we’re going to be the last generation. The evidence points to the opposite. I think we could be the first generation. We have the opportunity to be the first generation that leaves the environment in a better state than we found it. The first generation in human history to achieve sustainability.

Read more: We Need Climate Action Everywhere, All at Once

Yes, that seems hard to believe. I’ll explain why. Here I’m using the term “generation” loosely. I am from a generation that will be defined by our environmental problems. I was a child when climate change really came on the radar. Most of my adulthood will be spent in the midst of the major energy transition. I will see countries move from being almost entirely dependent on fossil fuels to being free of them. I will be 57 when governments hit the “2050 deadline” of reaching net-zero carbon emissions that so many have promised.

But, of course, there will be several generations involved in this project. There are a couple above me—my parents and grandparents—and a couple below me, my future children (and perhaps grandchildren). Generations are often pitted against each other: older generations are blamed for ruining the planet; younger generations are framed as hysterical and indignant. When it comes down to it, though, most of us want to build a better world, where our children and grandchildren can thrive. And we all need to work together to achieve that. All of us will be involved in this transformation.

Urgent optimism isn’t about looking away from the climate crisis that faces us. It’s about facing up to it, not from a place of ‘damage limitation’ but with a clear vision of the future we can build. One that not only stops warming in its tracks but builds a better world for us – all of us – and the species that we share the planet with.

That’s not going to happen on its own. It’s something we need to fight for.

Excerpted from NOT THE END OF THE WORLD by Hannah Ritchie. Copyright © 2024 by Hannah Ritchie. Used with permission by Little, Brown Spark, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company. All Rights Reserved.

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Essays About Change: Top 5 Examples and 10 Prompts

If you are writing essays about change, see below our best essay examples and writing prompts to help expand your horizon on this topic.

The only thing constant is change. It could be good or bad. It could be short-term or have a lasting impact. The best we can do is to ride on this inevitable and never-ending cycle of change and try coming out of it still standing, thriving, and smiling. This ability to cope with change is called resilience. 

However, some changes – such as the loss of a loved one or a livelihood — are too overwhelming to deal with that some fall into trauma and depression, in which case psychological support is highly encouraged. Read on to see our round-up of rich, well-written essays about change, and a list of helpful prompts follows to help you start your essay. 

1. “The Psychology Of Dealing With Change: How To Become Resilient” by Kathleen Smith

2. how prison changes people by christian jarrett, 3. six ways the workplace will change in the next 10 years by jordan turner, 4. “social movements for good: what they are and how to lead them” by derrick feldman, 5. “the right way to make a big career transition” by utkarsh amitabh, 1. changing your lifestyle for the better, 2. be the change the world needs, 3. adapting to life-changing events, 4. addressing climate change, 5. how did technology change our daily lives, 6. people who changed the world, 7. if you could change the world, 8. dealing with resistance to change, 9. coming-of-age novels, 10. changing your eating habits.

“If you can learn to cope with change, you’ll lower your risk for anxiety and depression. Your relationships will flourish, and your body will feel healthier. But if you can’t cope with change, only a minor amount of stress can make you feel overwhelmed by life. You might also struggle to set and meet the goals you have for yourself.”

Instead of fixating on events and people over which we do not have the power to control, we should focus on ourselves and how we can embrace change without fear. Some tips in this essay include practicing self-care, being in the present, and focusing on your priorities, such as health and well-being. 

Check out these essays about being grateful and essays about heroes .

“Ultimately, society may be confronted with a choice. We can punish offenders more severely and risk changing them for the worse, or we can design sentencing rules and prisons in a way that helps offenders rehabilitate and change for the better.”

In an environment where you are forced to follow the rules to the letter and worry about your safety and privacy daily, prisoners could develop a kind of “perpetual paranoia” or “emotional numbing” and deteriorate cognitive abilities. The essay suggests a rethink in how we deal with law-breakers to encourage reform rather than punish and risk repeat offenses.

Check out these essays about police brutality and essays about assessment .

“As technology closes the divide between geographically separate people, it introduces cracks in relationships and cultures. The remote distribution of work means that many employees will not build the same social relationships in the workplace, leading to issues of disengagement and loneliness.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has already disrupted our way of work in our new normal, but more changes are yet to unfold. This essay looks into the future of work where responsibilities and demands will see a sea change; machines will be co-workers; and the best employee is defined by digital skills, not years of experience.

You might also like these essays about cinema and essays about jealousy .

“Social movements for good establish a mass platform of action for a population, which helps inform and cultivate the awareness necessary to help prevent an issue from affecting more people. True social movements for good have the power to generate awareness that produces tangible results, helping the general population live longer, more productive, happier lives.”

A social movement for good aims to bring social justice to an aggrieved community by calling for tangible support and resources. To accelerate a movement’s momentum, an effective leader must possess certain qualities in this essay.

“There were so many questions running through my head during this time. Why should I quit to make this my full-time job? Is this what I really want? When should I quit? Poet Mary Oliver’s words kept ringing in my head: ‘What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?’”

Deciding on a career change is more complex than deciding whether you want to do something different. A career shift entails lifestyle, mindset, and motivation changes, each of which has to be carefully reassessed and prepared for. This essay guides you in deciding when or why it is right to leave your job.

10 Interesting Writing Prompts on Essays About Change

Below are thought-stimulating prompts to help with your essay: 

Committing to regular exercise or getting to bed earlier may be easier said than done. Moreover, the determination that was burning at the start of your lifestyle change journey may wane in the latter part when things get tough. So, for your essay, provide practical tips from wellness experts and your own experience on how to sustain a routine toward a better lifestyle. You can split your essay into sections for each health and wellness tip you recommend.

This is the gist of the famous quote by Mahatma Gandhi: “be the change you wish to see in the world.” Unfortunately, many of us get frustrated over people refusing to change but fail to see how this change should start with our perception and action. In this essay, write about what an individual can do to focus more on self-improvement and development. 

Have you ever faced a situation where you had to adapt to a drastic change? It could be moving to a different city or school or dealing with losing a loved one. Share your experience and list the traits and practices that helped you through this challenging phase. You may also research what psychologists recommend people to do to keep from falling into depression or developing anxiety. 

To offer a unique highlight in your essay, tackle what your school or community is doing to fight global warming. Interview city councilors and mayors and learn about ongoing initiatives to keep the city clean and green. So this essay could help entice others in your community to work together and volunteer in initiatives to slow climate change.

Essays About Technology

List down the advantages and disadvantages technology has presented in your life. For example, seeking clarification from teachers about an assignment has been made easier with the many communication channels available. However, technology has also enabled a work-at-home or distance learning arrangement that is causing burnout in many households. 

Feature a person who has revolutionized the world. It could be a scientist, artist, activist, writer, economist, athlete, etc. Preferably, it is someone you idolize, so you do not have to start from scratch in your research. So first, provide a short profile of this person to show his life and career background. Then, write about their ultimate contribution to society and how this continues to benefit or inspire many. 

If there’s one thing you could change in this world, what would it be? This sounds like a question you’d hear in pageants, but it could be a creative way to lay down your life advocacy. So, explain why this is where you want to see change and how this change can improve others’ lives.

Resistance to change is most common when companies modernize, and the dinosaurs in the office refuse to learn new digital platforms or systems. Write about what you think leaders and human resource units should do to help employees cope with changes in the new normal.

A coming-of-age novel tells stories of protagonists who grow up and undergo character transformation. From being eaten up by their fears, the main heroes become braver and better at confronting a world that once intimidated them. For this prompt, share your favorite coming-of-age novel and narrate the changes in the hero’s qualities and beliefs. 

Delivering fast food has become so easy that, for many, it has become a way of life, making it an enormous challenge to replace this practice with healthy eating habits. So, research and write about nutritionists’ tips on creating a lifestyle and environment conducive to healthy eating habits.

If you’re still stuck picking an essay topic, check out our guide on how to write essays about depression . For more ideas, you can check out our general resource of essay writing topics .

how can we change the world essay

Yna Lim is a communications specialist currently focused on policy advocacy. In her eight years of writing, she has been exposed to a variety of topics, including cryptocurrency, web hosting, agriculture, marketing, intellectual property, data privacy and international trade. A former journalist in one of the top business papers in the Philippines, Yna is currently pursuing her master's degree in economics and business.

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55 Transcript — “How To Make the World a Better Place by 2030” (2015) + Update (2018)

Do you think the world is going to be a better place next year? In the next decade? Can we end hunger, achieve gender equality, halt climate change, all in the next 15 years?

Well, according to the governments of the world, yes we can. In the last few days, the leaders of the world, meeting at the UN in New York, agreed a new set of Global Goals for the development of the world to 2030. And here they are: these goals are the product of a massive consultation exercise. The Global Goals are who we, humanity, want to be.

Now that’s the plan, but can we get there? Can this vision for a better world really be achieved? Well, I’m here today because we’ve run the numbers, and the answer, shockingly, is that maybe we actually can. But not with business as usual.

Now, the idea that the world is going to get a better place may seem a little fanciful. Watch the news every day and the world seems to be going backwards, not forwards. And let’s be frank: it’s pretty easy to be skeptical about grand announcements coming out of the UN.

But please, I invite you to suspend your disbelief for just a moment. Because back in 2001, the UN agreed another set of goals, the Millennium Development Goals. And the flagship target there was to halve the proportion of people living in poverty by 2015. The target was to take from a baseline of 1990, when 36 percent of the world’s population lived in poverty, to get to 18 percent poverty this year.

Did we hit this target? Well, no, we didn’t. We exceeded it. This year, global poverty is going to fall to 12 percent. Now, that’s still not good enough, and the world does still have plenty of problems. But the pessimists and doomsayers who say that the world can’t get better are simply wrong.

So how did we achieve this success? Well, a lot of it was because of economic growth. Some of the biggest reductions in poverty were in countries such as China and India, which have seen rapid economic growth in recent years. So can we pull off the same trick again? Can economic growth get us to the Global Goals? Well, to answer that question, we need to benchmark where the world is today against the Global Goals and figure out how far we have to travel.

But that ain’t easy, because the Global Goals aren’t just ambitious, they’re also pretty complicated. Over 17 goals, there are then 169 targets and literally hundreds of indicators. Also, while some of the goals are pretty specific — end hunger — others are a lot vaguer — promote peaceful and tolerant societies.

So to help us with this benchmarking, I’m going to use a tool called the Social Progress Index. What this does is measures all the stuff the Global Goals are trying to achieve, but sums it up into a single number that we can use as our benchmark and track progress over time.

The Social Progress Index basically asks three fundamental questions about a society. First of all, does everyone have the basic needs of survival: food, water, shelter, safety? Secondly, does everyone have the building blocks of a better life: education, information, health and a sustainable environment? And does everyone have the opportunity to improve their lives, through rights, freedom of choice, freedom from discrimination, and access to the world’s most advanced knowledge?

The Social Progress Index sums all this together using 52 indicators to create an aggregate score on a scale of 0 to 100. And what we find is that there’s a wide diversity of performance in the world today. The highest performing country, Norway, scores 88. The lowest-performing country, Central African Republic, scores 31. And we can add up all the countries together, weighting for the different population sizes, and that global score is 61. In concrete terms, that means that the average human being is living on a level of social progress about the same of Cuba or Kazakhstan today.

That’s where we are today: 61 out of 100. What do we have to get to achieve the Global Goals?

Now, the Global Goals are certainly ambitious, but they’re not about turning the world into Norway in just 15 years. So having looked at the numbers, my estimate is that a score of 75 would not only be a giant leap forward in human well-being, it would also count as hitting the Global Goals target. So there’s our target, 75 out of 100. Can we get there?

Well, the Social Progress Index can help us calculate this, because as you might have noticed, there are no economic indicators in there; there’s no GDP or economic growth in the Social Progress Index model. And what that lets us do is understand the relationship between economic growth and social progress.

Let me show you on this chart. So here on the vertical axis, I’ve put social progress, the stuff the Global Goals are trying to achieve. Higher is better. And then on the horizontal axis, is GDP per capita. Further to the right means richer. And in there, I’m now going to put all the countries of the world, each one represented by a dot, and on top of that I’m going to put the regression line that shows the average relationship. And what this tells us is that as we get richer, social progress does tend to improve. However, as we get richer, each extra dollar of GDP is buying us less and less social progress. And now we can use this information to start building our forecast. So here is the world in 2015. We have a social progress score of 61 and a GDP per capita of $14,000. And the place we’re trying to get to, remember, is 75, that Global Goals target. So here we are today, $14,000 per capita GDP. How rich are we going to be in 2030? That’s what we need to know next. Well, the best forecast we can find comes from the US Department of Agriculture, which forecasts 3.1 percent average global economic growth over the next 15 years, which means that in 2030, if they’re right, per capita GDP will be about $23,000. So now the question is: if we get that much richer, how much social progress are we going to get? Well, we asked a team of economists at Deloitte who checked and crunched the numbers, and they came back and said, well, look: if the world’s average wealth goes from $14,000 a year to $23,000 a year, social progress is going to increase from 61 to 62.4.

Just 62.4. Just a tiny increase.

Now this seems a bit strange. Economic growth seems to have really helped in the fight against poverty, but it doesn’t seem to be having much impact on trying to get to the Global Goals. So what’s going on? Well, I think there are two things. The first is that in a way, we’re the victims of our own success. We’ve used up the easy wins from economic growth, and now we’re moving on to harder problems. And also, we know that economic growth comes with costs as well as benefits. There are costs to the environment, costs from new health problems like obesity.

So that’s the bad news. We’re not going to get to the Global Goals just by getting richer.

So are the pessimists right?

Well, maybe not. Because the Social Progress Index also has some very good news.  Let me take you back to that regression line. So this is the average relationship between GDP and social progress, and this is what our last forecast was based on. But as you saw already, there is actually lots of noise around this trend line.

What that tells us, quite simply, is that GDP is not destiny. We have countries that are

underperforming on social progress, relative to their wealth. Russia has lots of natural resource wealth, but lots of social problems. China has boomed economically, but hasn’t made much headway on human rights or environmental issues. India has a space program and millions of people without toilets. Now, on the other hand, we have countries that are over-performing on social progress relative to their GDP. Costa Rica has prioritized education, health and environmental sustainability, and as a result, it’s achieving a very high level of social progress, despite only having a rather modest GDP. And Costa Rica’s not alone. From poor countries like Rwanda to richer countries like New Zealand, we see that it’s possible to get lots of social progress, even if your GDP is not so great.

And that’s really important, because it tells us two things. First of all, it tells us that we already in the world have the solutions to many of the problems that the Global Goals are trying to solve. It also tells us that we’re not slaves to GDP. Our choices matter: if we prioritize the well-being of people, then we can make a lot more progress than our GDP might expect.

How much? Enough to get us to the Global Goals? Well, let’s look at some numbers. What we know already: the world today is scoring 61 on social progress, and the place we want to get to is 75. If we rely on economic growth alone, we’re going to get to 62.4. So let’s assume now that we can get the countries that are currently underperforming on social progress — the Russia, China, Indias — just up to the average. How much social progress does that get us? Well, that takes us to 65. It’s a bit better, but still quite a long way to go. So let’s get a little bit more optimistic and say, what if every country gets a little bit better at turning its wealth into well-being? Well then, we get to 67. And now let’s be even bolder still. What if every country in the world chose to be like Costa Rica in prioritizing human well-being, using its wealth for the well-being of its citizens? Well then, we get to nearly 73, very close to the Global Goals.

Can we achieve the Global Goals? Certainly not with business as usual. Even a flood tide of economic growth is not going to get us there, if it just raises the mega-yachts and the super-wealthy and leaves the rest behind. If we’re going to achieve the Global Goals we have to do things differently. We have to prioritize social progress, and really scale solutions around the world. I believe the Global Goals are a historic opportunity, because the world’s leaders have promised to deliver them. Let’s not dismiss the goals or slide into pessimism; let’s hold them to that promise. And we need to hold them to that promise by holding them accountable, tracking their progress all the way through the next 15 years.

And I want to finish by showing you a way to do that, called the People’s Report Card. The People’s Report Card brings together all this data into a simple framework that we’ll all be familiar with from our school days, to hold them to account. It grades our performance on the Global Goals on a scale from F to A, where F is humanity at its worst, and A is humanity at its best. Our world today is scoring a C-. The Global Goals are all about getting to an A, and that’s why we’re going to be updating the People’s Report Card annually, for the world and for all the countries of the world, so we can hold our leaders to account to achieve this target and fulfill this promise. Because getting to the Global Goals will only happen if we do things differently, if our leaders do things differently, and for that to happen, that needs us to demand it.

So let’s reject business as usual. Let’s demand a different path. Let’s choose the world that we want.

Bruno Giussani: Thank you, Michael. Michael, just one question: the Millennium Development Goals established 15 years ago, they were kind of applying to every country but it turned out to be really a scorecard for emerging countries. Now the new Global Goals are explicitly universal. They ask for every country to show action and to show progress. How can I, as a private citizen, use the report card to create pressure for action?

Michael Green: This is a really important point; it’s a big shift in priorities — it’s no longer about poor countries and just poverty. It’s about every country. And every country is going to have challenges in getting to the Global Goals. Even, I’m sorry to say, Bruno, Switzerland has got to work to do. And so that’s why we’re going to produce these report cards in 2016 for every country in the world. Then we can really see, how are we doing? And it’s not going to be rich countries scoring straight A’s. And that, then, I think, is to provide a point of focus for people to start demanding action and start demanding progress.

BG: Thank you very much.

Transcript link

In 2015, the leaders of the world made a big promise. A promise that over the next 15 years, the lives of billions of people are going to get better with no one left behind. That promise is the Sustainable Development Goals — the SDGs. We’re now three years in; a fifth of the way into the journey. The clock is ticking. If we offtrack now, it’s going to get harder and harder to hit those goals. So what I want to do for you today is give you a snapshot on where we are today, some projections on where we’re heading and some ideas on things we might need to do differently.

Now, the SDGs are of course spectacularly complicated. I would expect nothing less from the United Nations.

How many goals? Maybe something tried and tested, like three, seven or 10. No, let’s pick a prime number higher than 10. Seventeen goals. I congratulate those of you who’ve memorized them already. For the rest of us, here they are.

Seventeen goals ranging from ending poverty to inclusive cities to sustainable fisheries; all a comprehensive plan for the future of our world. But sadly, a plan without the data to measure it. So how are we going to track progress? Well, I’m going to use today the Social Progress Index. It’s a measure of the quality of life of countries, ranging from the basic needs of survival — food, water, shelter, safety — through to the foundations of well-being — education, information, health and the environment — and opportunity — rights, freedom of choice, inclusiveness and access to higher education.

Now, the Social Progress Index doesn’t look like the SDGs, but fundamentally, it’s measuring the same concepts, and the Social Progress Index has the advantage that we have the data. We have 51 indicators drawn from trusted sources to measure these concepts. And also, what we can do because it’s an index, is add together all those indicators to give us an aggregate score about how we’re performing against the total package of the SDGs. Now, one caveat. The Social Progress Index is a measure of quality of life. We’re not looking at whether this can be achieved within the planet’s environmental limits. You will need other tools to do that.

So how are we doing on the SDGs? Well, I’m going to put the SDGs on a scale of zero to 100. And zero is the absolute worst score on each of those 51 indicators: absolute social progress, zero. And then 100 is the minimum standard required to achieve those SDGs. A hundred is where we want to get to by 2030. So, where did we start on this journey? Fortunately, not at zero. In 2015, the world score against the SDGs was 69.1. Some way on the way there but quite a long way to go.

Now let me also emphasize that this world forecast, which is based on data from 180 countries, is population weighted. So China has more weight in than Comoros; India has more weight in than Iceland. But we could unpack this and see how the countries are doing. And the country today that is closest to achieving the SDGs is Denmark. And the country with the furthest to go is Central African Republic. And everyone else is somewhere in between. So the challenge for the SDGs is to try and sweep all these dots across to the right, to 100 by 2030. Can we get there? Well, with the Social Progress Index, we’ve got some time series data. So we have some idea of the trend that the countries are on, on which we can build some projections.

So let’s have a look. Let’s start with our top-performing country, Denmark. And yes, I’m pleased to say that Denmark is forecast to achieve the SDGs by 2030. Maybe not surprising, but I’ll take a win. Let’s look at some of the other richer countries of the world — the G7. And we find that Germany and Japan will get there or thereabouts. But Canada, France, the UK and Italy are all going to fall short. And the United States? Quite some way back. Now, this is sort of worrying news. But these are the richest countries in the world, not the most populous. So let’s take a look now at the biggest countries in the world, the ones that will most affect whether or not we achieve the SDGs.

And here they are — countries in the world with a population of higher than 100 million, ranging from China to Ethiopia. Obviously, the US and Japan would be in that list, but we’ve looked at them already. So here we are. The biggest countries in the world; the dealbreakers for the SDGs. And the country that’s going to make most progress towards the SDGs is Mexico. Mexico is going to get to about 87, so just shy of where the US is going to get but quite some way off our SDG target. Russia comes next. Then China and Indonesia. Then Brazil — might’ve expected Brazil to do a bit better. Philippines, and then a step down to India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nigeria, and then Ethiopia. So none of these countries are going to hit the SDGs. And we can then take these numbers in all the countries of the world to give ourselves a world forecast on achieving that total package of the SDGs. So remember, in 2015 we started at 69.1. I’m pleased to say that over the last three years, we have made some progress. In 2018, we’ve hit 70.5, and if we project that rate of progress forward to 2030, that’s going to get us to 75.2, which is obviously a long way short of our target. Indeed, on current trends, we won’t hit the 2030 targets until 2094. Now, I don’t know about you, but I certainly don’t want to wait that long.

So what can we do about this? Well, the first thing to do is we’ve got to call out the rich countries. Here are the countries closest to the SDGs, with the greatest resources, and they’re falling short. Maybe they think that this is like the Old World where goals for the UN are just for poor countries and not for them. Well, you’re wrong. The SDGs are for every country, and it’s shameful that these wealthy countries are falling short. Every country needs a plan to implement the SDGs and deliver them for their citizens. G7, other rich countries — get your act together.

The second thing we can do is look a bit further into the data and see where there are opportunities to accelerate progress or there are negative trends that we can reverse. So I’m going to take you into three areas. One where we’re doing quite well, one where we really should be doing better and another where we’ve got some real problems.

Let’s start with the good news, and I want to talk about what we call nutrition and basic medical care. This covers SDG 2 on no hunger and the basic elements of SDG 3 on health, so maternal and child mortality, infectious diseases, etc … This is an area where most of the rich world has hit the SDGs. And we also find, looking at our big countries, that the most advanced have got pretty close. Here are our 11 big countries, and if you look at the top, Brazil and Russia are pretty close to the SDG target. But at the bottom — Ethiopia, Pakistan — a long way to go. That’s where we are in 2018. What’s our trajectory? On the current trajectory, how far are we going to get by 2030? Well, let’s have a look. Well, what we see is a lot of progress. See Bangladesh in the middle. If Bangladesh maintains its current rate of progress, it could get very close to that SDG target. And Ethiopia at the bottom is making a huge amount of progress at the moment. If that can be maintained, Ethiopia could get a long way. We add this all up for all the countries of the world and our projection is a score of 94.5 by 2030. And if countries like the Philippines, which have grown more slowly, could accelerate progress, then we could get a lot closer.

So there are reasons to be optimistic about SDGs 2 and 3. But there’s another very basic area of the SDGs where we’re doing less well, which is SDG 6, on water and sanitation. Again, it’s an SDG where most of the rich countries have already achieved the targets. And again, for our big countries — our big 11 emerging countries, we see that some of the countries, like Russia and Mexico, are very close to the target, but Nigeria and other countries are a very long way back. So how are we doing on this target? What progress are we going to make over the next 12 years based on the current direction of travel? Well, here we go … and yes, there is some progress. Our top four countries are all hitting the SDG targets — some are moving forward quite quickly. But it’s not enough to really move us forward significantly. What we see is that for the world as a whole, we’re forecasting a score of around 85, 86 by 2030 — not fast enough.

Now, obviously this is not good news, but I think what this data also shows is that we could be doing a lot better. Water and sanitation is a solved problem. It’s about scaling that solution everywhere. So if we could accelerate progress in some of those countries who are improving more slowly — Nigeria, the Philippines, etc. — then we could get a lot closer to the goal. Indeed, I think SDG 6 is probably the biggest opportunity of all the SDGs for a step change.

So that’s an area we could do better. Let’s look finally at an area where we are struggling, which is what we call personal rights and inclusiveness. This is covering concepts across a range of SDGs. SDG 1 on poverty, SDG 5 on gender equality, SDG 10 on inequality, SDG 11 on inclusive cities and SDG 16 on peace and justice. So across those SDGs there are themes around rights and inclusiveness, and those may seem less immediate or pressing than things like hunger and disease, but rights and inclusion are critical to an agenda of no one left behind. So how are we doing on those issues? Let’s start off with personal rights. What I’m going to do first is show you our big countries in 2015. So here they are, and I’ve put the USA and Japan back in, so it’s our 13 biggest countries in the world. And we see a wide range of scores. The United States at the top with Japan hitting the goals; China a long way behind. So what’s been our direction of travel on the rights agenda over the last three years? Let’s have a look. Well, what we see is actually pretty ugly. The majority of the countries are standing still or moving backwards, and big countries like Brazil, India, China, Bangladesh have all seen significant declines. This is worrying.

Let’s have a look now at inclusiveness. And inclusiveness is looking at things like violence and discrimination against minorities, gender equity, LGBT inclusion, etc… And as a result, we see that the scores for our big countries are generally lower. Every country, rich and poor alike, is struggling with building an inclusive society. But what’s our direction of travel? Are we building more inclusive countries? Let’s have a look — progress to 2018. And again we see the world moving backwards: most countries static, a lot of countries going backwards — Bangladesh moving backwards — but also, two of the countries that were leading — Brazil and the United States — have gone backwards significantly over the last three years.

Let’s sum this up now for the world as a whole. And what we see on personal rights for the whole world is we’re forecasting actually a decline in the score on personal rights to about 60, and then this decline in the score of inclusiveness to about 42. Now, obviously these things can change quite quickly with rights and with changes in law, changes in attitudes, but we have to accept that on current trends, this is probably the most worrying aspect of the SDGs. How I’ve depressed you …

I hope not because I think what we do see is that progress is happening in a lot of places and there are opportunities for accelerating progress. We are living in a world that is tantalizingly close to ensuring that no one need die of hunger or malaria or diarrhea. If we can focus our efforts, mobilize resources, galvanize the political will, that step change is possible.

But in focusing on those really basic, solvable SDGs, we mustn’t forget the whole package. The goals are an unwieldy set of indicators, goals and targets, but they also include the challenges our world faces. The fact that the SDGs are focusing attention on the fact that we face a crisis in personal rights and inclusiveness is a positive. If we forget that, if we choose to double down on the SDGs that we can solve, if we go for SDG à la carte and pick the most easy SDGs, then we will have missed the point of the SDGs, we will miss the goals and we will have failed on the promise of the SDGs.

Essentials for ENGL-121 Copyright © 2016 by David Buck is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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How I Can Change The World and Make It a Better Place

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How can a person change the world

Introduction.

We all want the world to become better, but how can a person change the world? I believe that the answer to this big question might be quite simple. If you want to change the world, you need to change yourself.

How is it going to work? You are a part of the world, so when you become better, the world becomes better as well. You contribute to changing the world by improving yourself and working hard to achieve your dreams. When you succeed, you provide other people with an example they can live by.

It is very important to identify your strengths and weaknesses, so you have a better understanding of what is going to help you in your journey and what you will need to fix. I think of myself as a hard worker, and I believe it will help in my education. I can acquire more knowledge and skills that I can apply to solve various problems and share with others to help them. Most real-world tasks require the cooperation of many people, so I will use my good leadership skills to organize a team to work on my projects.

I believe that the quality that will help me most is dedication. It is crucial to be devoted to your work to achieve success because if you want to make a difference in the world, you need to be ready to invest a lot of your time and energy. I need to improve every day to change myself and the world for the better, and my dedication and aim for high achievement are the tools I will use for it.

When we improve ourselves, we improve the world. We need to use our strengths to serve us in our strive to become better people. Setting high goals and putting in work to achieve them is the way to live a happy and meaningful life and it leads to a better world for everybody.

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7 Ways to Make the World a Better Place

7 Ways to Make the World a Better Place

Author: E.C. LaMeaux

The idea of changing the world can be daunting. It's not only easy but understandable to think, "I’m only one person; what can I really do?" If every person thinks that, nothing will get done. But if every person did just one thing to make the world a better place today, billions of acts of kindness, social responsibility and generosity would take place — and wouldn’t that alone change the face of this planet?

Helen Keller said, "I am only one, but still I am one; I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and just because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do." That is the attitude in which authors Linda Catling and Jeffery Hollender wrote the book How to Make the World a Better Place: 116 Ways You Can Make a Difference. Here is a list of some of their ideas, and a few others, on how to make the world a better place one small action at a time.

1. Volunteer your time at local schools

Whether you have a school-age child or not, children are the future of this world. Spend time helping them reach their potential by tutoring, mentoring or taking part in an after-school program.

2. Recognize the humanity of other people, and respect their dignity

Consciously realize that the homeless man you pass on the street every day is, in fact, a man. Through choices of his own or circumstances out of his control, he ended up in this situation, and that makes him no less human. Say hello and warmly greet him. Your greeting could bring healing to his heart, and help heal the world one person at a time. Treat people as equals, no matter how you interpret their social standing.

3. Use less paper

Our forests are being cut down at an alarming rate. Conserve the trees by conserving paper. Send an e-mail instead of a letter, type directions into your cell phone instead of writing them down, and bring your own fabric shopping bags to the store.

4. Drive less

Even the use of hybrid vehicles contributes to carbon emissions, greenhouse gases, and reduced air quality. Take a moment to consider how you can use your personal vehicle less. You could carpool or take public transportation to work, walk to church, or bike to pick up a few things from the store and make the world a better place.

5. Conserve water

Taking long showers and letting the water run as you brush your teeth are indulgences that negatively impact our world. Try to limit your water usage by timing how long you have the water running, and trying to beat that time the next time you turn on the faucet.

6. Donate to clean water charities

A large portion of the world is without fresh drinking water. Educate yourself about the drought epidemic, and make the world a better place by donating to organizations and charities helping to fight against the lack of clean water around the globe. Your donation could result in the reduction of preventable, water-related diseases.

7. Be generous

It's easy to be selfish with your time, money, and resources by getting caught up in our material-driven societal expectations. Try being generous and see how your life changes. Buy coffee for the person behind you in line at Starbucks, read to children at your local library, or simply stop and listen for the answer when you ask a friend how they're doing. Chances are that your generosity will energize you, and you'll feel less helpless about how to make the world a better place.

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Seven ways to change the world

Date: Monday, 21 June 2021

illustration showing activists holding up an 'equality' banner.

Equal rights and opportunities for all people, of all genders, everywhere. It’s not a new vision, but still a bold one, as no country in the world has achieved gender equality in all aspects of life.

Since 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has claimed more than 3.7 million lives globally and created and exacerbated a gender equality crisis. Even before COVID-19, almost one in three women worldwide experienced abuse; during the pandemic, calls to helplines increased five-fold in some countries. The World Economic Forum estimates that at the current rate of progress, women will not achieve pay or leadership equity with men for at least another 135.6 years.

The upcoming Generation Equality Forum in Paris, from 30 June – 2 July, is an inflection point to confront the gender equality crisis and spur major investments, policy, and programmes to advance gender equality and women’s rights.

Convened by UN Women and co-hosted by the governments of Mexico and France, in partnership with youth and civil society, the Forum will bring together governments, feminist leaders, youth, and change makers from every sector, to announce trailblazing gender equality investments, programmes, and policies. It will mark the beginning of a five-year action journey led by six Action Coalitions and a Compact on Women, Peace and Security, and Humanitarian Action .

Together, the Action Coalitions and the Compact have identified the most catalytic actions and targets needed to make irreversible progress by 2026. For instance, policies that recognize, reduce, and redistribute care work and create an additional 80 million decent care jobs; laws that protect 550 million more women and girls from gender-based violence; and doubling the proportion of women working in technology and innovation, while increasing investment in gender-responsive climate solutions.

As we head towards the Paris Forum, here are seven ways to change the world, and find out how you can #ActForEqual.

1. End gender-based violence

Action Coalition on Gender-Based Violence

Putting an end to gender-based violence is essential for fulfilling the vision of a gender-equal world. An estimated 736 million women —almost one in three—have been subjected to intimate partner violence, non-partner sexual violence, or both at least once in their life.

What needs to change? More governments must ratify international and regional conventions that prohibit all forms of gender-based violence, and strengthen, implement, and finance evidence-driven laws, policies, and action plans.

“Everyone agrees that women’s rights organizations need to receive better funding,” says Céline Bonnaire , Executive Director of the Kering Foundation and a member of the Action Coalition on Gender-Based Violence. “But when you have a look at where the money goes, women and girl-lead organizations are receiving just seven per cent of the global philanthropic funding.” That’s why the Action Coalition on ending gender-based violence is focused on increasing the amount of quality, flexible funding from governments, private sector, and other donors to girl-led and women’s organizations, as well as the broader need to scale-up and improve survivor-centred services.

"I hope that each participant will come away from the forum knowing what change they can implement the next day to help achieve gender equality." - Celine Bonnaire,

“Everyone has a role to play in putting an end to violence against women,” says Bonnaire. “I want a future where there are no more women that have to be survivors of violence.”

2. Guarantee economic justice and rights

Action Coalition on Economic Justice and Rights

Women and girls are particularly disadvantaged in social protection systems. The gender gap in labour force participation has not shifted in 30 years, stagnating at 31 per cent . Young women, aged 15-29, are three times more likely to be outside the labour force and schools than young men.

Transforming the care economy is one key component of guaranteeing economic justice and rights for women and girls everywhere. Women spend, on average, triple the amount of time performing unpaid care and domestic work that men do, so it is essential that labour rights reward and represent care workers. Pay equity and decent work must become the norm.

Diane Ndarbawa, President of Manki Maroua, an association of girl-child mothers in Cameroon, and a member of the Action Coalition on Economic Justice and Rights, says, “Legal change is needed urgently because it will significantly speed up progress on gender equality and contribute to economic justice, as well as safeguard this progress in the long term.”

Supporting organizations that work with local communities, such as those offering expertise and financial backing to girls and women entrepreneurs, is another key action to drive progress, says Ndarbawa.

"We want to make our voices heard on behalf of the women and girls of our community, so that they can have access to decent work, a professional career, a business - and so they are not left behind." - Diane Ndarbawa

“We want to make our voices heard… so that [women] have access to decent work, a professional career, a business—and so they are not left behind,” she stresses.

3. Ensure bodily autonomy and sexual and reproductive health and rights

Action Coalition on Bodily Autonomy and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights

Empowering women and girls to exercise their sexual and reproductive health and rights and make autonomous decisions about their own bodies free from coercion, violence, and discrimination is an urgent need and critical to achieving a gender-equal world.

Worldwide, 45 per cent of girls and women , aged 15-49, who are married or in unions cannot make decisions about their own bodies, such as deciding about contraception or saying no to sex. Further, women and girls in humanitarian emergencies face specific and exacerbated challenges—60 per cent of maternal deaths happen in countries affected by humanitarian crisis or fragile conditions.

The upcoming Generation Equality Forum in Paris is discussing key solutions, such as expanding comprehensive sexuality education and increasing the quality of and access to contraceptive services for millions more adolescent girls and women by 2026. The Action Coalition on Bodily Autonomy and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights is also focused on ensuring that, in five years’ time, 50 million more adolescent girls and women live in jurisdictions where they can access safe and legal abortion.

"I hope that the Forum serves to highlight that investing in gender equality is not only fair, but also smart and necessary if we want to recover fully and sustainably from the pandemic." - Kate Hampton

“For us, bodily autonomy is not just about removing individual friction in securing services, but also about shifting the broader market systems within which decisions are taken about what services to provide for whom and where,” says Kate Hampton, CEO of the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation and Action Coalition member. Central to this effort is placing the perspectives and needs of women and girls at the centre of decision-making, rather than treating them as an afterthought, says Hampton.

4. Feminist action for climate justice

Action Coalition on Feminist Action for Climate Justice

A changing climate affects everyone, but it’s the world’s poorest and those in vulnerable situations, especially women and girls, who bear the brunt of environmental, economic, and social shocks and face greater health and safety risks.

Yet, women and girls are underrepresented in advancing climate justice across all levels and sectors, and climate interventions fail to adequately account for women’s and girls’ realities in climate crises, such as violence, healthcare needs, fraught economic resilience, and unpaid care and domestic work.

Joanita Babirye , from Uganda, is the Co-founder of Girls for Climate Action and member of the Action Coalition on Feminist Action for Climate Justice, and she knows this reality firsthand. “I grew up in a community where women and girls interact with the environment every day for food, income, and to take care of their households,” she shares. “We started having to travel longer distances to look for water. We noticed that changes to the seasons were having a negative impact on agriculture, which made us increasingly concerned.”

Babirye felt that something had to be done to further feminist action for climate justice, so she joined forces with other Action Coalition members from around the world to increase direct access to financing for gender-just climate solutions, enable women and girls to lead a just transition to a green economy, and increase the collection and use of data on gender and the environment.

"Being involved in the Action Coalition has opened up a diverse space where everyone is pushing for the same goal. This gives me the feeling that we are in the fight together, that we stand for the same cause and we believe in creating something that represents the voices of the highly margianlized" -  Joanita Babirye

“Women and girls should be able to demand climate justice, but this is only possible when they are equipped with the tools and knowledge to hold everyone accountable,” says Babirye. “The transformation needed is to make women and girls fully aware of the issues and leaders of the solutions.”

5. Foster technology and innovation for gender equality

Action Coalition on technology and innovation for gender equality

What would the world look like if women and girls had equal opportunities to access, use, lead, and design technology and innovation? This question is central to the Generation Equality Action Coalition on Technology and Innovation for Gender Equality, which is set to bridge the gender digital divide across generations, double the proportion of women working in technology and innovation, and eliminate online gender-based violence.

Kyzzhibek Batyrkanova , a champion for women and girls in STEM and leader of Kyrgyzstan’s first Space Programme, believes that investing in feminist technology and innovation is a key part of building an inclusive and accountable future. “We encounter many negative comments that this programme will fail because girls and women are engaged in it. People do not even consider any other factors such as lack of funding and infrastructure,” she says.

To level the playing field for women and girls, the diverse partners that make up the Action Coalition on Technology and Innovation are proposing concrete steps to widen innovation ecosystems, embed transparency and accountability in digital technology, and expand inclusive digital economies.

“We need…to break the glass ceiling and expand opportunities for women and girls in science,” says Batyrkanova, who works to promote STEM education for young women and girls, including courses on soldering, 3D-modeling, and 3D-printing. “We want to show by our own example that girls are capable of anything, even reaching for the stars,” she shares.

6. Invest in feminist movements and leadership

Action Coalition on Feminist Movements and Leadership

Without increased action to advance feminist movements and leadership, we are far from achieving gender parity in political life. At the current rate of progress, equal gender representation will not be achieved in national legislative bodies until 2063. Feminist leaders, including trans, intersex and nonbinary people, indigenous women, young feminists, and other historically excluded people, have vital contributions to make today.

“I find it problematic that, even in 2021, we still need to justify why women can and should be leaders,” says Bogolo Joy Kenewendo , an economist from Botswana, leader, and member of the G7 Gender Equality Advisory Council, as well as the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Digital Cooperation. “A lot of work has been done since the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action . Why should I now, 26 years later, still have to justify my position in leadership?” she asks.

“Feminist organizations are on the front lines in their communities as we have seen throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. They have been supporting the poorest and most vulnerable, fighting and advocating to ensure that those dependent upon on services, such as women’s shelters, can continue to have access. These are the people on the ground who are making change happen on a day-to-day basis, and we must support them,” says Karina Gould, Minister of International Development at the Government of Canada, and member of the Generation Equality Forum Action Coalition on Feminist Movements and Leadership.

“Canada signed up to co-lead the Action Coalition because it recognizes that investing in feminist movements and feminist leaders is critical for advancing gender equality”, says Minister Gould. “We see challenges and barriers to feminist movements and leadership that we want to help mitigate,” she adds. “A big challenge is funding. Less than one per cent of development assistance goes towards feminist organizations. We simply need more.”

Motivated by the same sentiments as Minister Gould, the Action Coalition on Advancing Feminist Movements and Leadership are putting forth actions to fund and support diverse feminist activists, organizations, and civic space for feminist action. By 2026, the Coalition aims to advance the leadership and decision-making power of women, girls, and nonbinary people around the world.

7. Put women in the heart and at the helm of peace, security, and humanitarian action

Women, Peace and Security and Humanitarian Action Compact

Two decades have passed since the landmark UN Security Council resolution 1325 was adopted, enshrining the role of women in securing and maintaining peace. Peace and equitable crisis response and disaster prevention are prerequisites for health, human security, and sustainable development.

As we convene for the Paris Forum, some two billion people are living in countries affected by conflict, another billion are caught up in protracted crises, and millions more face the ever growing threat of climate change. Even in the midst of COVID-19, guns were not silenced, and women continued their efforts to keep peace or act as first responders, often without much recognition or resources.

In conflict-affected countries, women’s representation in COVID-19 taskforces stands at a low 18 per cent . Although evidence shows that when women are at the negotiating table, peace agreements are more likely to last 15 years or longer, on average, women made up only 13 per cent of negotiators, six per cent of mediators, and six per cent of signatories in major peace processes between 1992 and 2019.

The policies and measures to change this are already in place, but implementation and investment is lacking, in women as peacebuilders, front-line humanitarian workers, and human rights defenders. At the Generation Equality Forum in Paris, a diverse coalition will announce how they plan to accelerate implementation of the agenda.

“Women and young people have a profound understanding of their countries’ peace and security situation, gender and power relations, and humanitarian needs, because they live this reality every single day,” says Mavic Cabrera Balleza , Founder and CEO of the Global Network of Women Peacebuilders, which is part of the Compact on Women, Peace and Security and Humanitarian Action.

Balleza and the many diverse partners engaged in developing the Compact will leverage existing peace and security and humanitarian frameworks to dismantle discriminatory barriers and promote the protection of women's rights and the work of women peacebuilders, front-line responders, and women human rights defenders.

"Success at the Generation Equality forum is when we are able to translate gender equality from a concept of policy into reality across all contexts, including during conflicts and crisis." - Mavic Belleza

After more than 30 governments, United Nations entities, and global civil society organizations sign the Compat at the Forum, signatories are expected to implement these actions and report on progress over the next five years.

“When local populations are able to shape the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security and humanitarian agendas, it becomes inclusive, participatory, intersectional, and it fosters strong ownership,” says Balleza. “This is what we need to prioritize to effectively respond to the violent conflicts, the pandemic, and other humanitarian crises.”

You can #ActforEqual

2021 can be a landmark year for gender equality if we #ActForEqual and step up for gender equality. Register for the Generation Equality Forum by 27 June 2021 to join the multi-actor and inter-generational gathering and follow UN Women on social media to stay up to date with Forum news.

To learn more about each Action Coalition’s commitments, see the Forum’s microsite for commitment making.

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Home — Essay Samples — Life — Worldview — How to Make the World a Better Place

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How to Make The World a Better Place

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Words: 1599 |

Updated: 22 November, 2023

Words: 1599 | Pages: 4 | 8 min read

Table of contents

Addressing the scourge of racism, human trafficking: an invisible crisis, global warming and environmental threats, video version.

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Works Cited

  • Amnesty International. (n.d.). Racial discrimination.
  • Anti-Slavery International. (n.d.). Labor trafficking.
  • Bartlett, L. (2019). Racial discrimination: Then and now. United Nations Human Rights, Office of the High Commissioner. Retrieved from https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/RacialDiscriminationThenNow.aspx
  • Environmental Protection Agency. (n.d.). Climate change impacts.
  • Global Slavery Index. (2020). Global findings. Retrieved from https://www.globalslaveryindex.org/2020/findings/global-findings/
  • Human Rights Watch. (n.d.). Combating racial discrimination.
  • International Labor Organization. (n.d.). Forced labor.
  • Markey, P. M. (2019). Racial discrimination: Impact and response. Annual Review of Psychology, 70, 395-421.
  • The United Nations. (n.d.). Sustainable Development Goal 10: Reduced inequalities.
  • United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. (n.d.). What is climate change? Retrieved from https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-convention/what-is-the-united-nations-framework-convention-on-climate-change

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how can we change the world essay

Young people hold the key to creating a better future

how can we change the world essay

Image:  Fateme Alaie/Unsplash

.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo{-webkit-transition:all 0.15s ease-out;transition:all 0.15s ease-out;cursor:pointer;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;outline:none;color:inherit;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:hover,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-hover]{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:focus,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-focus]{box-shadow:0 0 0 3px rgba(168,203,251,0.5);} Klaus Schwab

how can we change the world essay

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Stay up to date:, youth perspectives.

Listen to the article

  • Young people are the most affected by the crises facing our world.
  • They are also the ones with the most innovative ideas and energy to build a better society for tomorrow.
  • Read the report "Davos Labs: Youth Recovery Plan" here .

Have you read?

Youth recovery plan.

Young people today are coming to age in a world beset by crises. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic devastated lives and livelihoods around the world, the socio-economic systems of the past had put the liveability of the planet at risk and eroded the pathway to healthy, happy, fulfilled lives for too many.

The same prosperity that enabled global progress and democracy after the Second World War is now creating the inequality, social discord and climate change we see today — along with a widening generational wealth gap and youth debt burden, too. For Millennials, the 2008 financial crisis and the Great Recession resulted in significant unemployment, huge student debt and a lack of meaningful jobs. Now, for Generation Z, COVID-19 has caused school shutdowns, worsening unemployment, and mass protests.

Young people are right to be deeply concerned and angry, seeing these challenges as a betrayal of their future.

But we can’t let these converging crises stifle us. We must remain optimistic – and we must act.

The next generation are the most important and most affected stakeholders when talking about our global future – and we owe them more than this. The year 2021 is the time to start thinking and acting long-term to make intergenerational parity the norm and to design a society, economy and international community that cares for all people.

Young people are also the best placed to lead this transformation. In the past 10 years of working with the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers Community, a network of people between the ages of 20 and 30 working to address problems in more than 450 cities around the world, I’ve seen first-hand that they are the ones with the most innovative ideas and energy to build a better society for tomorrow.

Over the past year, Global Shapers organized dialogues on the most pressing issues facing society, government and business in 146 cities, reaching an audience of more than 2 million. The result of this global, multistakeholder effort, “ Davos Labs: Youth Recovery Plan ,” presents both a stark reminder of our urgent need to act and compelling insights for creating a more resilient, sustainable, inclusive world.

Davos Lab: Youth Recovery Plan

One of the unifying themes of the discussions was the lack of trust young people have for existing political, economic and social systems. They are fed up with ongoing concerns of corruption and stale political leadership, as well as the constant threat to physical safety caused by surveillance and militarized policing against activists and people of colour. In fact, more young people hold faith in governance by system of artificial intelligence than by a fellow human being.

Facing a fragile labour market and almost bankrupt social security system, almost half of those surveyed said they felt they had inadequate skills for the current and future workforce, and almost a quarter said they would risk falling into debt if faced with an unexpected medical expense. The fact that half of the global population remains without internet access presents additional hurdles. Waves of lockdowns and the stresses of finding work or returning to workplaces have exacerbated the existential and often silent mental health crisis.

So, what would Millennials and Generation Z do differently?

Most immediately, they are calling for the international community to safeguard vaccine equity to respond to COVID-19 and prevent future health crises.

Young people are rallying behind a global wealth tax to help finance more resilient safety nets and to manage the alarming surge in wealth inequality. They are calling to direct greater investments to programmes that help young progressive voices join government and become policymakers.

I am inspired by the countless examples of young people pursuing collective action by bringing together diverse voices to care for their communities.

To limit global warming, young people are demanding a halt to coal, oil and gas exploration, development, and financing, as well as asking firms to replace any corporate board directors who are unwilling to transition to cleaner energy sources.

They are championing an open internet and a $2 trillion digital access plan to bring the world online and prevent internet shutdowns, and they are presenting new ways to minimize the spread of misinformation and combat dangerous extremist views. At the same time, they’re speaking up about mental health and calling for investment to prevent and tackle the stigma associated with it.

The Global Shapers Community is a network of young people under the age of 30 who are working together to drive dialogue, action and change to address local, regional and global challenges.

The community spans more than 8,000 young people in 165 countries and territories.

Teams of Shapers form hubs in cities where they self-organize to create projects that address the needs of their community. The focus of the projects are wide-ranging, from responding to disasters and combating poverty, to fighting climate change and building inclusive communities.

Examples of projects include Water for Life, a effort by the Cartagena Hub that provides families with water filters that remove biological toxins from the water supply and combat preventable diseases in the region, and Creativity Lab from the Yerevan Hub, which features activities for children ages 7 to 9 to boost creative thinking.

Each Shaper also commits personally and professionally to take action to preserve our planet.

Join or support a hub near you .

Transparency, accountability, trust and a focus on stakeholder capitalism will be key to meeting this generation’s ambitions and expectations. We must also entrust in them the power to take the lead to create meaningful change.

I am inspired by the countless examples of young people pursuing collective action by bringing together diverse voices to care for their communities. From providing humanitarian assistance to refugees to helping those most affected by the pandemic to driving local climate action, their examples provide the blueprints we need to build the more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable society and economy we need in the post-COVID-19 world.

We are living together in a global village, and it’s only by interactive dialogue, understanding each another and having respect for one another that we can create the necessary climate for a peaceful and sustainable world.

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World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

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How artificial intelligence is transforming the world

Subscribe to techstream, darrell m. west and darrell m. west senior fellow - center for technology innovation , douglas dillon chair in governmental studies john r. allen john r. allen.

April 24, 2018

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a wide-ranging tool that enables people to rethink how we integrate information, analyze data, and use the resulting insights to improve decision making—and already it is transforming every walk of life. In this report, Darrell West and John Allen discuss AI’s application across a variety of sectors, address issues in its development, and offer recommendations for getting the most out of AI while still protecting important human values.

Table of Contents I. Qualities of artificial intelligence II. Applications in diverse sectors III. Policy, regulatory, and ethical issues IV. Recommendations V. Conclusion

  • 49 min read

Most people are not very familiar with the concept of artificial intelligence (AI). As an illustration, when 1,500 senior business leaders in the United States in 2017 were asked about AI, only 17 percent said they were familiar with it. 1 A number of them were not sure what it was or how it would affect their particular companies. They understood there was considerable potential for altering business processes, but were not clear how AI could be deployed within their own organizations.

Despite its widespread lack of familiarity, AI is a technology that is transforming every walk of life. It is a wide-ranging tool that enables people to rethink how we integrate information, analyze data, and use the resulting insights to improve decisionmaking. Our hope through this comprehensive overview is to explain AI to an audience of policymakers, opinion leaders, and interested observers, and demonstrate how AI already is altering the world and raising important questions for society, the economy, and governance.

In this paper, we discuss novel applications in finance, national security, health care, criminal justice, transportation, and smart cities, and address issues such as data access problems, algorithmic bias, AI ethics and transparency, and legal liability for AI decisions. We contrast the regulatory approaches of the U.S. and European Union, and close by making a number of recommendations for getting the most out of AI while still protecting important human values. 2

In order to maximize AI benefits, we recommend nine steps for going forward:

  • Encourage greater data access for researchers without compromising users’ personal privacy,
  • invest more government funding in unclassified AI research,
  • promote new models of digital education and AI workforce development so employees have the skills needed in the 21 st -century economy,
  • create a federal AI advisory committee to make policy recommendations,
  • engage with state and local officials so they enact effective policies,
  • regulate broad AI principles rather than specific algorithms,
  • take bias complaints seriously so AI does not replicate historic injustice, unfairness, or discrimination in data or algorithms,
  • maintain mechanisms for human oversight and control, and
  • penalize malicious AI behavior and promote cybersecurity.

Qualities of artificial intelligence

Although there is no uniformly agreed upon definition, AI generally is thought to refer to “machines that respond to stimulation consistent with traditional responses from humans, given the human capacity for contemplation, judgment and intention.” 3  According to researchers Shubhendu and Vijay, these software systems “make decisions which normally require [a] human level of expertise” and help people anticipate problems or deal with issues as they come up. 4 As such, they operate in an intentional, intelligent, and adaptive manner.

Intentionality

Artificial intelligence algorithms are designed to make decisions, often using real-time data. They are unlike passive machines that are capable only of mechanical or predetermined responses. Using sensors, digital data, or remote inputs, they combine information from a variety of different sources, analyze the material instantly, and act on the insights derived from those data. With massive improvements in storage systems, processing speeds, and analytic techniques, they are capable of tremendous sophistication in analysis and decisionmaking.

Artificial intelligence is already altering the world and raising important questions for society, the economy, and governance.

Intelligence

AI generally is undertaken in conjunction with machine learning and data analytics. 5 Machine learning takes data and looks for underlying trends. If it spots something that is relevant for a practical problem, software designers can take that knowledge and use it to analyze specific issues. All that is required are data that are sufficiently robust that algorithms can discern useful patterns. Data can come in the form of digital information, satellite imagery, visual information, text, or unstructured data.

Adaptability

AI systems have the ability to learn and adapt as they make decisions. In the transportation area, for example, semi-autonomous vehicles have tools that let drivers and vehicles know about upcoming congestion, potholes, highway construction, or other possible traffic impediments. Vehicles can take advantage of the experience of other vehicles on the road, without human involvement, and the entire corpus of their achieved “experience” is immediately and fully transferable to other similarly configured vehicles. Their advanced algorithms, sensors, and cameras incorporate experience in current operations, and use dashboards and visual displays to present information in real time so human drivers are able to make sense of ongoing traffic and vehicular conditions. And in the case of fully autonomous vehicles, advanced systems can completely control the car or truck, and make all the navigational decisions.

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Applications in diverse sectors

AI is not a futuristic vision, but rather something that is here today and being integrated with and deployed into a variety of sectors. This includes fields such as finance, national security, health care, criminal justice, transportation, and smart cities. There are numerous examples where AI already is making an impact on the world and augmenting human capabilities in significant ways. 6

One of the reasons for the growing role of AI is the tremendous opportunities for economic development that it presents. A project undertaken by PriceWaterhouseCoopers estimated that “artificial intelligence technologies could increase global GDP by $15.7 trillion, a full 14%, by 2030.” 7 That includes advances of $7 trillion in China, $3.7 trillion in North America, $1.8 trillion in Northern Europe, $1.2 trillion for Africa and Oceania, $0.9 trillion in the rest of Asia outside of China, $0.7 trillion in Southern Europe, and $0.5 trillion in Latin America. China is making rapid strides because it has set a national goal of investing $150 billion in AI and becoming the global leader in this area by 2030.

Meanwhile, a McKinsey Global Institute study of China found that “AI-led automation can give the Chinese economy a productivity injection that would add 0.8 to 1.4 percentage points to GDP growth annually, depending on the speed of adoption.” 8 Although its authors found that China currently lags the United States and the United Kingdom in AI deployment, the sheer size of its AI market gives that country tremendous opportunities for pilot testing and future development.

Investments in financial AI in the United States tripled between 2013 and 2014 to a total of $12.2 billion. 9 According to observers in that sector, “Decisions about loans are now being made by software that can take into account a variety of finely parsed data about a borrower, rather than just a credit score and a background check.” 10 In addition, there are so-called robo-advisers that “create personalized investment portfolios, obviating the need for stockbrokers and financial advisers.” 11 These advances are designed to take the emotion out of investing and undertake decisions based on analytical considerations, and make these choices in a matter of minutes.

A prominent example of this is taking place in stock exchanges, where high-frequency trading by machines has replaced much of human decisionmaking. People submit buy and sell orders, and computers match them in the blink of an eye without human intervention. Machines can spot trading inefficiencies or market differentials on a very small scale and execute trades that make money according to investor instructions. 12 Powered in some places by advanced computing, these tools have much greater capacities for storing information because of their emphasis not on a zero or a one, but on “quantum bits” that can store multiple values in each location. 13 That dramatically increases storage capacity and decreases processing times.

Fraud detection represents another way AI is helpful in financial systems. It sometimes is difficult to discern fraudulent activities in large organizations, but AI can identify abnormalities, outliers, or deviant cases requiring additional investigation. That helps managers find problems early in the cycle, before they reach dangerous levels. 14

National security

AI plays a substantial role in national defense. Through its Project Maven, the American military is deploying AI “to sift through the massive troves of data and video captured by surveillance and then alert human analysts of patterns or when there is abnormal or suspicious activity.” 15 According to Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan, the goal of emerging technologies in this area is “to meet our warfighters’ needs and to increase [the] speed and agility [of] technology development and procurement.” 16

Artificial intelligence will accelerate the traditional process of warfare so rapidly that a new term has been coined: hyperwar.

The big data analytics associated with AI will profoundly affect intelligence analysis, as massive amounts of data are sifted in near real time—if not eventually in real time—thereby providing commanders and their staffs a level of intelligence analysis and productivity heretofore unseen. Command and control will similarly be affected as human commanders delegate certain routine, and in special circumstances, key decisions to AI platforms, reducing dramatically the time associated with the decision and subsequent action. In the end, warfare is a time competitive process, where the side able to decide the fastest and move most quickly to execution will generally prevail. Indeed, artificially intelligent intelligence systems, tied to AI-assisted command and control systems, can move decision support and decisionmaking to a speed vastly superior to the speeds of the traditional means of waging war. So fast will be this process, especially if coupled to automatic decisions to launch artificially intelligent autonomous weapons systems capable of lethal outcomes, that a new term has been coined specifically to embrace the speed at which war will be waged: hyperwar.

While the ethical and legal debate is raging over whether America will ever wage war with artificially intelligent autonomous lethal systems, the Chinese and Russians are not nearly so mired in this debate, and we should anticipate our need to defend against these systems operating at hyperwar speeds. The challenge in the West of where to position “humans in the loop” in a hyperwar scenario will ultimately dictate the West’s capacity to be competitive in this new form of conflict. 17

Just as AI will profoundly affect the speed of warfare, the proliferation of zero day or zero second cyber threats as well as polymorphic malware will challenge even the most sophisticated signature-based cyber protection. This forces significant improvement to existing cyber defenses. Increasingly, vulnerable systems are migrating, and will need to shift to a layered approach to cybersecurity with cloud-based, cognitive AI platforms. This approach moves the community toward a “thinking” defensive capability that can defend networks through constant training on known threats. This capability includes DNA-level analysis of heretofore unknown code, with the possibility of recognizing and stopping inbound malicious code by recognizing a string component of the file. This is how certain key U.S.-based systems stopped the debilitating “WannaCry” and “Petya” viruses.

Preparing for hyperwar and defending critical cyber networks must become a high priority because China, Russia, North Korea, and other countries are putting substantial resources into AI. In 2017, China’s State Council issued a plan for the country to “build a domestic industry worth almost $150 billion” by 2030. 18 As an example of the possibilities, the Chinese search firm Baidu has pioneered a facial recognition application that finds missing people. In addition, cities such as Shenzhen are providing up to $1 million to support AI labs. That country hopes AI will provide security, combat terrorism, and improve speech recognition programs. 19 The dual-use nature of many AI algorithms will mean AI research focused on one sector of society can be rapidly modified for use in the security sector as well. 20

Health care

AI tools are helping designers improve computational sophistication in health care. For example, Merantix is a German company that applies deep learning to medical issues. It has an application in medical imaging that “detects lymph nodes in the human body in Computer Tomography (CT) images.” 21 According to its developers, the key is labeling the nodes and identifying small lesions or growths that could be problematic. Humans can do this, but radiologists charge $100 per hour and may be able to carefully read only four images an hour. If there were 10,000 images, the cost of this process would be $250,000, which is prohibitively expensive if done by humans.

What deep learning can do in this situation is train computers on data sets to learn what a normal-looking versus an irregular-appearing lymph node is. After doing that through imaging exercises and honing the accuracy of the labeling, radiological imaging specialists can apply this knowledge to actual patients and determine the extent to which someone is at risk of cancerous lymph nodes. Since only a few are likely to test positive, it is a matter of identifying the unhealthy versus healthy node.

AI has been applied to congestive heart failure as well, an illness that afflicts 10 percent of senior citizens and costs $35 billion each year in the United States. AI tools are helpful because they “predict in advance potential challenges ahead and allocate resources to patient education, sensing, and proactive interventions that keep patients out of the hospital.” 22

Criminal justice

AI is being deployed in the criminal justice area. The city of Chicago has developed an AI-driven “Strategic Subject List” that analyzes people who have been arrested for their risk of becoming future perpetrators. It ranks 400,000 people on a scale of 0 to 500, using items such as age, criminal activity, victimization, drug arrest records, and gang affiliation. In looking at the data, analysts found that youth is a strong predictor of violence, being a shooting victim is associated with becoming a future perpetrator, gang affiliation has little predictive value, and drug arrests are not significantly associated with future criminal activity. 23

Judicial experts claim AI programs reduce human bias in law enforcement and leads to a fairer sentencing system. R Street Institute Associate Caleb Watney writes:

Empirically grounded questions of predictive risk analysis play to the strengths of machine learning, automated reasoning and other forms of AI. One machine-learning policy simulation concluded that such programs could be used to cut crime up to 24.8 percent with no change in jailing rates, or reduce jail populations by up to 42 percent with no increase in crime rates. 24

However, critics worry that AI algorithms represent “a secret system to punish citizens for crimes they haven’t yet committed. The risk scores have been used numerous times to guide large-scale roundups.” 25 The fear is that such tools target people of color unfairly and have not helped Chicago reduce the murder wave that has plagued it in recent years.

Despite these concerns, other countries are moving ahead with rapid deployment in this area. In China, for example, companies already have “considerable resources and access to voices, faces and other biometric data in vast quantities, which would help them develop their technologies.” 26 New technologies make it possible to match images and voices with other types of information, and to use AI on these combined data sets to improve law enforcement and national security. Through its “Sharp Eyes” program, Chinese law enforcement is matching video images, social media activity, online purchases, travel records, and personal identity into a “police cloud.” This integrated database enables authorities to keep track of criminals, potential law-breakers, and terrorists. 27 Put differently, China has become the world’s leading AI-powered surveillance state.

Transportation

Transportation represents an area where AI and machine learning are producing major innovations. Research by Cameron Kerry and Jack Karsten of the Brookings Institution has found that over $80 billion was invested in autonomous vehicle technology between August 2014 and June 2017. Those investments include applications both for autonomous driving and the core technologies vital to that sector. 28

Autonomous vehicles—cars, trucks, buses, and drone delivery systems—use advanced technological capabilities. Those features include automated vehicle guidance and braking, lane-changing systems, the use of cameras and sensors for collision avoidance, the use of AI to analyze information in real time, and the use of high-performance computing and deep learning systems to adapt to new circumstances through detailed maps. 29

Light detection and ranging systems (LIDARs) and AI are key to navigation and collision avoidance. LIDAR systems combine light and radar instruments. They are mounted on the top of vehicles that use imaging in a 360-degree environment from a radar and light beams to measure the speed and distance of surrounding objects. Along with sensors placed on the front, sides, and back of the vehicle, these instruments provide information that keeps fast-moving cars and trucks in their own lane, helps them avoid other vehicles, applies brakes and steering when needed, and does so instantly so as to avoid accidents.

Advanced software enables cars to learn from the experiences of other vehicles on the road and adjust their guidance systems as weather, driving, or road conditions change. This means that software is the key—not the physical car or truck itself.

Since these cameras and sensors compile a huge amount of information and need to process it instantly to avoid the car in the next lane, autonomous vehicles require high-performance computing, advanced algorithms, and deep learning systems to adapt to new scenarios. This means that software is the key, not the physical car or truck itself. 30 Advanced software enables cars to learn from the experiences of other vehicles on the road and adjust their guidance systems as weather, driving, or road conditions change. 31

Ride-sharing companies are very interested in autonomous vehicles. They see advantages in terms of customer service and labor productivity. All of the major ride-sharing companies are exploring driverless cars. The surge of car-sharing and taxi services—such as Uber and Lyft in the United States, Daimler’s Mytaxi and Hailo service in Great Britain, and Didi Chuxing in China—demonstrate the opportunities of this transportation option. Uber recently signed an agreement to purchase 24,000 autonomous cars from Volvo for its ride-sharing service. 32

However, the ride-sharing firm suffered a setback in March 2018 when one of its autonomous vehicles in Arizona hit and killed a pedestrian. Uber and several auto manufacturers immediately suspended testing and launched investigations into what went wrong and how the fatality could have occurred. 33 Both industry and consumers want reassurance that the technology is safe and able to deliver on its stated promises. Unless there are persuasive answers, this accident could slow AI advancements in the transportation sector.

Smart cities

Metropolitan governments are using AI to improve urban service delivery. For example, according to Kevin Desouza, Rashmi Krishnamurthy, and Gregory Dawson:

The Cincinnati Fire Department is using data analytics to optimize medical emergency responses. The new analytics system recommends to the dispatcher an appropriate response to a medical emergency call—whether a patient can be treated on-site or needs to be taken to the hospital—by taking into account several factors, such as the type of call, location, weather, and similar calls. 34

Since it fields 80,000 requests each year, Cincinnati officials are deploying this technology to prioritize responses and determine the best ways to handle emergencies. They see AI as a way to deal with large volumes of data and figure out efficient ways of responding to public requests. Rather than address service issues in an ad hoc manner, authorities are trying to be proactive in how they provide urban services.

Cincinnati is not alone. A number of metropolitan areas are adopting smart city applications that use AI to improve service delivery, environmental planning, resource management, energy utilization, and crime prevention, among other things. For its smart cities index, the magazine Fast Company ranked American locales and found Seattle, Boston, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and New York City as the top adopters. Seattle, for example, has embraced sustainability and is using AI to manage energy usage and resource management. Boston has launched a “City Hall To Go” that makes sure underserved communities receive needed public services. It also has deployed “cameras and inductive loops to manage traffic and acoustic sensors to identify gun shots.” San Francisco has certified 203 buildings as meeting LEED sustainability standards. 35

Through these and other means, metropolitan areas are leading the country in the deployment of AI solutions. Indeed, according to a National League of Cities report, 66 percent of American cities are investing in smart city technology. Among the top applications noted in the report are “smart meters for utilities, intelligent traffic signals, e-governance applications, Wi-Fi kiosks, and radio frequency identification sensors in pavement.” 36

Policy, regulatory, and ethical issues

These examples from a variety of sectors demonstrate how AI is transforming many walks of human existence. The increasing penetration of AI and autonomous devices into many aspects of life is altering basic operations and decisionmaking within organizations, and improving efficiency and response times.

At the same time, though, these developments raise important policy, regulatory, and ethical issues. For example, how should we promote data access? How do we guard against biased or unfair data used in algorithms? What types of ethical principles are introduced through software programming, and how transparent should designers be about their choices? What about questions of legal liability in cases where algorithms cause harm? 37

The increasing penetration of AI into many aspects of life is altering decisionmaking within organizations and improving efficiency. At the same time, though, these developments raise important policy, regulatory, and ethical issues.

Data access problems

The key to getting the most out of AI is having a “data-friendly ecosystem with unified standards and cross-platform sharing.” AI depends on data that can be analyzed in real time and brought to bear on concrete problems. Having data that are “accessible for exploration” in the research community is a prerequisite for successful AI development. 38

According to a McKinsey Global Institute study, nations that promote open data sources and data sharing are the ones most likely to see AI advances. In this regard, the United States has a substantial advantage over China. Global ratings on data openness show that U.S. ranks eighth overall in the world, compared to 93 for China. 39

But right now, the United States does not have a coherent national data strategy. There are few protocols for promoting research access or platforms that make it possible to gain new insights from proprietary data. It is not always clear who owns data or how much belongs in the public sphere. These uncertainties limit the innovation economy and act as a drag on academic research. In the following section, we outline ways to improve data access for researchers.

Biases in data and algorithms

In some instances, certain AI systems are thought to have enabled discriminatory or biased practices. 40 For example, Airbnb has been accused of having homeowners on its platform who discriminate against racial minorities. A research project undertaken by the Harvard Business School found that “Airbnb users with distinctly African American names were roughly 16 percent less likely to be accepted as guests than those with distinctly white names.” 41

Racial issues also come up with facial recognition software. Most such systems operate by comparing a person’s face to a range of faces in a large database. As pointed out by Joy Buolamwini of the Algorithmic Justice League, “If your facial recognition data contains mostly Caucasian faces, that’s what your program will learn to recognize.” 42 Unless the databases have access to diverse data, these programs perform poorly when attempting to recognize African-American or Asian-American features.

Many historical data sets reflect traditional values, which may or may not represent the preferences wanted in a current system. As Buolamwini notes, such an approach risks repeating inequities of the past:

The rise of automation and the increased reliance on algorithms for high-stakes decisions such as whether someone get insurance or not, your likelihood to default on a loan or somebody’s risk of recidivism means this is something that needs to be addressed. Even admissions decisions are increasingly automated—what school our children go to and what opportunities they have. We don’t have to bring the structural inequalities of the past into the future we create. 43

AI ethics and transparency

Algorithms embed ethical considerations and value choices into program decisions. As such, these systems raise questions concerning the criteria used in automated decisionmaking. Some people want to have a better understanding of how algorithms function and what choices are being made. 44

In the United States, many urban schools use algorithms for enrollment decisions based on a variety of considerations, such as parent preferences, neighborhood qualities, income level, and demographic background. According to Brookings researcher Jon Valant, the New Orleans–based Bricolage Academy “gives priority to economically disadvantaged applicants for up to 33 percent of available seats. In practice, though, most cities have opted for categories that prioritize siblings of current students, children of school employees, and families that live in school’s broad geographic area.” 45 Enrollment choices can be expected to be very different when considerations of this sort come into play.

Depending on how AI systems are set up, they can facilitate the redlining of mortgage applications, help people discriminate against individuals they don’t like, or help screen or build rosters of individuals based on unfair criteria. The types of considerations that go into programming decisions matter a lot in terms of how the systems operate and how they affect customers. 46

For these reasons, the EU is implementing the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in May 2018. The rules specify that people have “the right to opt out of personally tailored ads” and “can contest ‘legal or similarly significant’ decisions made by algorithms and appeal for human intervention” in the form of an explanation of how the algorithm generated a particular outcome. Each guideline is designed to ensure the protection of personal data and provide individuals with information on how the “black box” operates. 47

Legal liability

There are questions concerning the legal liability of AI systems. If there are harms or infractions (or fatalities in the case of driverless cars), the operators of the algorithm likely will fall under product liability rules. A body of case law has shown that the situation’s facts and circumstances determine liability and influence the kind of penalties that are imposed. Those can range from civil fines to imprisonment for major harms. 48 The Uber-related fatality in Arizona will be an important test case for legal liability. The state actively recruited Uber to test its autonomous vehicles and gave the company considerable latitude in terms of road testing. It remains to be seen if there will be lawsuits in this case and who is sued: the human backup driver, the state of Arizona, the Phoenix suburb where the accident took place, Uber, software developers, or the auto manufacturer. Given the multiple people and organizations involved in the road testing, there are many legal questions to be resolved.

In non-transportation areas, digital platforms often have limited liability for what happens on their sites. For example, in the case of Airbnb, the firm “requires that people agree to waive their right to sue, or to join in any class-action lawsuit or class-action arbitration, to use the service.” By demanding that its users sacrifice basic rights, the company limits consumer protections and therefore curtails the ability of people to fight discrimination arising from unfair algorithms. 49 But whether the principle of neutral networks holds up in many sectors is yet to be determined on a widespread basis.

Recommendations

In order to balance innovation with basic human values, we propose a number of recommendations for moving forward with AI. This includes improving data access, increasing government investment in AI, promoting AI workforce development, creating a federal advisory committee, engaging with state and local officials to ensure they enact effective policies, regulating broad objectives as opposed to specific algorithms, taking bias seriously as an AI issue, maintaining mechanisms for human control and oversight, and penalizing malicious behavior and promoting cybersecurity.

Improving data access

The United States should develop a data strategy that promotes innovation and consumer protection. Right now, there are no uniform standards in terms of data access, data sharing, or data protection. Almost all the data are proprietary in nature and not shared very broadly with the research community, and this limits innovation and system design. AI requires data to test and improve its learning capacity. 50 Without structured and unstructured data sets, it will be nearly impossible to gain the full benefits of artificial intelligence.

In general, the research community needs better access to government and business data, although with appropriate safeguards to make sure researchers do not misuse data in the way Cambridge Analytica did with Facebook information. There is a variety of ways researchers could gain data access. One is through voluntary agreements with companies holding proprietary data. Facebook, for example, recently announced a partnership with Stanford economist Raj Chetty to use its social media data to explore inequality. 51 As part of the arrangement, researchers were required to undergo background checks and could only access data from secured sites in order to protect user privacy and security.

In the U.S., there are no uniform standards in terms of data access, data sharing, or data protection. Almost all the data are proprietary in nature and not shared very broadly with the research community, and this limits innovation and system design.

Google long has made available search results in aggregated form for researchers and the general public. Through its “Trends” site, scholars can analyze topics such as interest in Trump, views about democracy, and perspectives on the overall economy. 52 That helps people track movements in public interest and identify topics that galvanize the general public.

Twitter makes much of its tweets available to researchers through application programming interfaces, commonly referred to as APIs. These tools help people outside the company build application software and make use of data from its social media platform. They can study patterns of social media communications and see how people are commenting on or reacting to current events.

In some sectors where there is a discernible public benefit, governments can facilitate collaboration by building infrastructure that shares data. For example, the National Cancer Institute has pioneered a data-sharing protocol where certified researchers can query health data it has using de-identified information drawn from clinical data, claims information, and drug therapies. That enables researchers to evaluate efficacy and effectiveness, and make recommendations regarding the best medical approaches, without compromising the privacy of individual patients.

There could be public-private data partnerships that combine government and business data sets to improve system performance. For example, cities could integrate information from ride-sharing services with its own material on social service locations, bus lines, mass transit, and highway congestion to improve transportation. That would help metropolitan areas deal with traffic tie-ups and assist in highway and mass transit planning.

Some combination of these approaches would improve data access for researchers, the government, and the business community, without impinging on personal privacy. As noted by Ian Buck, the vice president of NVIDIA, “Data is the fuel that drives the AI engine. The federal government has access to vast sources of information. Opening access to that data will help us get insights that will transform the U.S. economy.” 53 Through its Data.gov portal, the federal government already has put over 230,000 data sets into the public domain, and this has propelled innovation and aided improvements in AI and data analytic technologies. 54 The private sector also needs to facilitate research data access so that society can achieve the full benefits of artificial intelligence.

Increase government investment in AI

According to Greg Brockman, the co-founder of OpenAI, the U.S. federal government invests only $1.1 billion in non-classified AI technology. 55 That is far lower than the amount being spent by China or other leading nations in this area of research. That shortfall is noteworthy because the economic payoffs of AI are substantial. In order to boost economic development and social innovation, federal officials need to increase investment in artificial intelligence and data analytics. Higher investment is likely to pay for itself many times over in economic and social benefits. 56

Promote digital education and workforce development

As AI applications accelerate across many sectors, it is vital that we reimagine our educational institutions for a world where AI will be ubiquitous and students need a different kind of training than they currently receive. Right now, many students do not receive instruction in the kinds of skills that will be needed in an AI-dominated landscape. For example, there currently are shortages of data scientists, computer scientists, engineers, coders, and platform developers. These are skills that are in short supply; unless our educational system generates more people with these capabilities, it will limit AI development.

For these reasons, both state and federal governments have been investing in AI human capital. For example, in 2017, the National Science Foundation funded over 6,500 graduate students in computer-related fields and has launched several new initiatives designed to encourage data and computer science at all levels from pre-K to higher and continuing education. 57 The goal is to build a larger pipeline of AI and data analytic personnel so that the United States can reap the full advantages of the knowledge revolution.

But there also needs to be substantial changes in the process of learning itself. It is not just technical skills that are needed in an AI world but skills of critical reasoning, collaboration, design, visual display of information, and independent thinking, among others. AI will reconfigure how society and the economy operate, and there needs to be “big picture” thinking on what this will mean for ethics, governance, and societal impact. People will need the ability to think broadly about many questions and integrate knowledge from a number of different areas.

One example of new ways to prepare students for a digital future is IBM’s Teacher Advisor program, utilizing Watson’s free online tools to help teachers bring the latest knowledge into the classroom. They enable instructors to develop new lesson plans in STEM and non-STEM fields, find relevant instructional videos, and help students get the most out of the classroom. 58 As such, they are precursors of new educational environments that need to be created.

Create a federal AI advisory committee

Federal officials need to think about how they deal with artificial intelligence. As noted previously, there are many issues ranging from the need for improved data access to addressing issues of bias and discrimination. It is vital that these and other concerns be considered so we gain the full benefits of this emerging technology.

In order to move forward in this area, several members of Congress have introduced the “Future of Artificial Intelligence Act,” a bill designed to establish broad policy and legal principles for AI. It proposes the secretary of commerce create a federal advisory committee on the development and implementation of artificial intelligence. The legislation provides a mechanism for the federal government to get advice on ways to promote a “climate of investment and innovation to ensure the global competitiveness of the United States,” “optimize the development of artificial intelligence to address the potential growth, restructuring, or other changes in the United States workforce,” “support the unbiased development and application of artificial intelligence,” and “protect the privacy rights of individuals.” 59

Among the specific questions the committee is asked to address include the following: competitiveness, workforce impact, education, ethics training, data sharing, international cooperation, accountability, machine learning bias, rural impact, government efficiency, investment climate, job impact, bias, and consumer impact. The committee is directed to submit a report to Congress and the administration 540 days after enactment regarding any legislative or administrative action needed on AI.

This legislation is a step in the right direction, although the field is moving so rapidly that we would recommend shortening the reporting timeline from 540 days to 180 days. Waiting nearly two years for a committee report will certainly result in missed opportunities and a lack of action on important issues. Given rapid advances in the field, having a much quicker turnaround time on the committee analysis would be quite beneficial.

Engage with state and local officials

States and localities also are taking action on AI. For example, the New York City Council unanimously passed a bill that directed the mayor to form a taskforce that would “monitor the fairness and validity of algorithms used by municipal agencies.” 60 The city employs algorithms to “determine if a lower bail will be assigned to an indigent defendant, where firehouses are established, student placement for public schools, assessing teacher performance, identifying Medicaid fraud and determine where crime will happen next.” 61

According to the legislation’s developers, city officials want to know how these algorithms work and make sure there is sufficient AI transparency and accountability. In addition, there is concern regarding the fairness and biases of AI algorithms, so the taskforce has been directed to analyze these issues and make recommendations regarding future usage. It is scheduled to report back to the mayor on a range of AI policy, legal, and regulatory issues by late 2019.

Some observers already are worrying that the taskforce won’t go far enough in holding algorithms accountable. For example, Julia Powles of Cornell Tech and New York University argues that the bill originally required companies to make the AI source code available to the public for inspection, and that there be simulations of its decisionmaking using actual data. After criticism of those provisions, however, former Councilman James Vacca dropped the requirements in favor of a task force studying these issues. He and other city officials were concerned that publication of proprietary information on algorithms would slow innovation and make it difficult to find AI vendors who would work with the city. 62 It remains to be seen how this local task force will balance issues of innovation, privacy, and transparency.

Regulate broad objectives more than specific algorithms

The European Union has taken a restrictive stance on these issues of data collection and analysis. 63 It has rules limiting the ability of companies from collecting data on road conditions and mapping street views. Because many of these countries worry that people’s personal information in unencrypted Wi-Fi networks are swept up in overall data collection, the EU has fined technology firms, demanded copies of data, and placed limits on the material collected. 64 This has made it more difficult for technology companies operating there to develop the high-definition maps required for autonomous vehicles.

The GDPR being implemented in Europe place severe restrictions on the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning. According to published guidelines, “Regulations prohibit any automated decision that ‘significantly affects’ EU citizens. This includes techniques that evaluates a person’s ‘performance at work, economic situation, health, personal preferences, interests, reliability, behavior, location, or movements.’” 65 In addition, these new rules give citizens the right to review how digital services made specific algorithmic choices affecting people.

By taking a restrictive stance on issues of data collection and analysis, the European Union is putting its manufacturers and software designers at a significant disadvantage to the rest of the world.

If interpreted stringently, these rules will make it difficult for European software designers (and American designers who work with European counterparts) to incorporate artificial intelligence and high-definition mapping in autonomous vehicles. Central to navigation in these cars and trucks is tracking location and movements. Without high-definition maps containing geo-coded data and the deep learning that makes use of this information, fully autonomous driving will stagnate in Europe. Through this and other data protection actions, the European Union is putting its manufacturers and software designers at a significant disadvantage to the rest of the world.

It makes more sense to think about the broad objectives desired in AI and enact policies that advance them, as opposed to governments trying to crack open the “black boxes” and see exactly how specific algorithms operate. Regulating individual algorithms will limit innovation and make it difficult for companies to make use of artificial intelligence.

Take biases seriously

Bias and discrimination are serious issues for AI. There already have been a number of cases of unfair treatment linked to historic data, and steps need to be undertaken to make sure that does not become prevalent in artificial intelligence. Existing statutes governing discrimination in the physical economy need to be extended to digital platforms. That will help protect consumers and build confidence in these systems as a whole.

For these advances to be widely adopted, more transparency is needed in how AI systems operate. Andrew Burt of Immuta argues, “The key problem confronting predictive analytics is really transparency. We’re in a world where data science operations are taking on increasingly important tasks, and the only thing holding them back is going to be how well the data scientists who train the models can explain what it is their models are doing.” 66

Maintaining mechanisms for human oversight and control

Some individuals have argued that there needs to be avenues for humans to exercise oversight and control of AI systems. For example, Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence CEO Oren Etzioni argues there should be rules for regulating these systems. First, he says, AI must be governed by all the laws that already have been developed for human behavior, including regulations concerning “cyberbullying, stock manipulation or terrorist threats,” as well as “entrap[ping] people into committing crimes.” Second, he believes that these systems should disclose they are automated systems and not human beings. Third, he states, “An A.I. system cannot retain or disclose confidential information without explicit approval from the source of that information.” 67 His rationale is that these tools store so much data that people have to be cognizant of the privacy risks posed by AI.

In the same vein, the IEEE Global Initiative has ethical guidelines for AI and autonomous systems. Its experts suggest that these models be programmed with consideration for widely accepted human norms and rules for behavior. AI algorithms need to take into effect the importance of these norms, how norm conflict can be resolved, and ways these systems can be transparent about norm resolution. Software designs should be programmed for “nondeception” and “honesty,” according to ethics experts. When failures occur, there must be mitigation mechanisms to deal with the consequences. In particular, AI must be sensitive to problems such as bias, discrimination, and fairness. 68

A group of machine learning experts claim it is possible to automate ethical decisionmaking. Using the trolley problem as a moral dilemma, they ask the following question: If an autonomous car goes out of control, should it be programmed to kill its own passengers or the pedestrians who are crossing the street? They devised a “voting-based system” that asked 1.3 million people to assess alternative scenarios, summarized the overall choices, and applied the overall perspective of these individuals to a range of vehicular possibilities. That allowed them to automate ethical decisionmaking in AI algorithms, taking public preferences into account. 69 This procedure, of course, does not reduce the tragedy involved in any kind of fatality, such as seen in the Uber case, but it provides a mechanism to help AI developers incorporate ethical considerations in their planning.

Penalize malicious behavior and promote cybersecurity

As with any emerging technology, it is important to discourage malicious treatment designed to trick software or use it for undesirable ends. 70 This is especially important given the dual-use aspects of AI, where the same tool can be used for beneficial or malicious purposes. The malevolent use of AI exposes individuals and organizations to unnecessary risks and undermines the virtues of the emerging technology. This includes behaviors such as hacking, manipulating algorithms, compromising privacy and confidentiality, or stealing identities. Efforts to hijack AI in order to solicit confidential information should be seriously penalized as a way to deter such actions. 71

In a rapidly changing world with many entities having advanced computing capabilities, there needs to be serious attention devoted to cybersecurity. Countries have to be careful to safeguard their own systems and keep other nations from damaging their security. 72 According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, a major American bank receives around 11 million calls a week at its service center. In order to protect its telephony from denial of service attacks, it uses a “machine learning-based policy engine [that] blocks more than 120,000 calls per month based on voice firewall policies including harassing callers, robocalls and potential fraudulent calls.” 73 This represents a way in which machine learning can help defend technology systems from malevolent attacks.

To summarize, the world is on the cusp of revolutionizing many sectors through artificial intelligence and data analytics. There already are significant deployments in finance, national security, health care, criminal justice, transportation, and smart cities that have altered decisionmaking, business models, risk mitigation, and system performance. These developments are generating substantial economic and social benefits.

The world is on the cusp of revolutionizing many sectors through artificial intelligence, but the way AI systems are developed need to be better understood due to the major implications these technologies will have for society as a whole.

Yet the manner in which AI systems unfold has major implications for society as a whole. It matters how policy issues are addressed, ethical conflicts are reconciled, legal realities are resolved, and how much transparency is required in AI and data analytic solutions. 74 Human choices about software development affect the way in which decisions are made and the manner in which they are integrated into organizational routines. Exactly how these processes are executed need to be better understood because they will have substantial impact on the general public soon, and for the foreseeable future. AI may well be a revolution in human affairs, and become the single most influential human innovation in history.

Note: We appreciate the research assistance of Grace Gilberg, Jack Karsten, Hillary Schaub, and Kristjan Tomasson on this project.

The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit organization devoted to independent research and policy solutions. Its mission is to conduct high-quality, independent research and, based on that research, to provide innovative, practical recommendations for policymakers and the public. The conclusions and recommendations of any Brookings publication are solely those of its author(s), and do not reflect the views of the Institution, its management, or its other scholars.

Support for this publication was generously provided by Amazon. Brookings recognizes that the value it provides is in its absolute commitment to quality, independence, and impact. Activities supported by its donors reflect this commitment. 

John R. Allen is a member of the Board of Advisors of Amida Technology and on the Board of Directors of Spark Cognition. Both companies work in fields discussed in this piece.

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  • Portions of this paper draw on Darrell M. West, The Future of Work: Robots, AI, and Automation , Brookings Institution Press, 2018.
  • PriceWaterhouseCoopers, “Sizing the Prize: What’s the Real Value of AI for Your Business and How Can You Capitalise?” 2017.
  • Dominic Barton, Jonathan Woetzel, Jeongmin Seong, and Qinzheng Tian, “Artificial Intelligence: Implications for China” (New York: McKinsey Global Institute, April 2017), p. 1.
  • Nathaniel Popper, “Stocks and Bots,” New York Times Magazine , February 28, 2016.
  • Michael Lewis, Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt (New York: Norton, 2015).
  • Cade Metz, “In Quantum Computing Race, Yale Professors Battle Tech Giants,” New York Times , November 14, 2017, p. B3.
  • Executive Office of the President, “Artificial Intelligence, Automation, and the Economy,” December 2016, pp. 27-28.
  • Christian Davenport, “Future Wars May Depend as Much on Algorithms as on Ammunition, Report Says,” Washington Post , December 3, 2017.
  • John R. Allen and Amir Husain, “On Hyperwar,” Naval Institute Proceedings , July 17, 2017, pp. 30-36.
  • Paul Mozur, “China Sets Goal to Lead in Artificial Intelligence,” New York Times , July 21, 2017, p. B1.
  • Paul Mozur and John Markoff, “Is China Outsmarting American Artificial Intelligence?” New York Times , May 28, 2017.
  • Economist , “America v China: The Battle for Digital Supremacy,” March 15, 2018.
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  • Simon Denyer, “China’s Watchful Eye,” Washington Post , January 7, 2018.
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  • Portions of this section are drawn from Darrell M. West, “Driverless Cars in China, Europe, Japan, Korea, and the United States,” Brookings Institution, September 2016.
  • Yuming Ge, Xiaoman Liu, Libo Tang, and Darrell M. West, “Smart Transportation in China and the United States,” Center for Technology Innovation, Brookings Institution, December 2017.
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  • Daisuke Wakabayashi, “Self-Driving Uber Car Kills Pedestrian in Arizona, Where Robots Roam,” New York Times , March 19, 2018.
  • Kevin Desouza, Rashmi Krishnamurthy, and Gregory Dawson, “Learning from Public Sector Experimentation with Artificial Intelligence,” TechTank (blog), Brookings Institution, June 23, 2017.
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  • Osonde Osoba and William Welser IV, “The Risks of Artificial Intelligence to Security and the Future of Work” (Santa Monica, Calif.: RAND Corp., December 2017) (www.rand.org/pubs/perspectives/PE237.html).
  • Ibid., p. 7.
  • Dominic Barton, Jonathan Woetzel, Jeongmin Seong, and Qinzheng Tian, “Artificial Intelligence: Implications for China” (New York: McKinsey Global Institute, April 2017), p. 7.
  • Executive Office of the President, “Preparing for the Future of Artificial Intelligence,” October 2016, pp. 30-31.
  • Elaine Glusac, “As Airbnb Grows, So Do Claims of Discrimination,” New York Times , June 21, 2016.
  • “Joy Buolamwini,” Bloomberg Businessweek , July 3, 2017, p. 80.
  • Mark Purdy and Paul Daugherty, “Why Artificial Intelligence is the Future of Growth,” Accenture, 2016.
  • Jon Valant, “Integrating Charter Schools and Choice-Based Education Systems,” Brown Center Chalkboard blog, Brookings Institution, June 23, 2017.
  • Tucker, “‘A White Mask Worked Better.’”
  • Cliff Kuang, “Can A.I. Be Taught to Explain Itself?” New York Times Magazine , November 21, 2017.
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  • Executive Office of the President, “Artificial Intelligence, Automation, and the Economy” and “Preparing for the Future of Artificial Intelligence.”
  • Nancy Scolar, “Facebook’s Next Project: American Inequality,” Politico , February 19, 2018.
  • Darrell M. West, “What Internet Search Data Reveals about Donald Trump’s First Year in Office,” Brookings Institution policy report, January 17, 2018.
  • Ian Buck, “Testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Information Technology,” February 14, 2018.
  • Keith Nakasone, “Testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Information Technology,” March 7, 2018.
  • Greg Brockman, “The Dawn of Artificial Intelligence,” Testimony before U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Space, Science, and Competitiveness, November 30, 2016.
  • Amir Khosrowshahi, “Testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Information Technology,” February 14, 2018.
  • James Kurose, “Testimony before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Information Technology,” March 7, 2018.
  • Stephen Noonoo, “Teachers Can Now Use IBM’s Watson to Search for Free Lesson Plans,” EdSurge , September 13, 2017.
  • Congress.gov, “H.R. 4625 FUTURE of Artificial Intelligence Act of 2017,” December 12, 2017.
  • Elizabeth Zima, “Could New York City’s AI Transparency Bill Be a Model for the Country?” Government Technology , January 4, 2018.
  • Julia Powles, “New York City’s Bold, Flawed Attempt to Make Algorithms Accountable,” New Yorker , December 20, 2017.
  • Sheera Frenkel, “Tech Giants Brace for Europe’s New Data Privacy Rules,” New York Times , January 28, 2018.
  • Claire Miller and Kevin O’Brien, “Germany’s Complicated Relationship with Google Street View,” New York Times , April 23, 2013.
  • Cade Metz, “Artificial Intelligence is Setting Up the Internet for a Huge Clash with Europe,” Wired , July 11, 2016.
  • Eric Siegel, “Predictive Analytics Interview Series: Andrew Burt,” Predictive Analytics Times , June 14, 2017.
  • Oren Etzioni, “How to Regulate Artificial Intelligence,” New York Times , September 1, 2017.
  • “Ethical Considerations in Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems,” unpublished paper. IEEE Global Initiative, 2018.
  • Ritesh Noothigattu, Snehalkumar Gaikwad, Edmond Awad, Sohan Dsouza, Iyad Rahwan, Pradeep Ravikumar, and Ariel Procaccia, “A Voting-Based System for Ethical Decision Making,” Computers and Society , September 20, 2017 (www.media.mit.edu/publications/a-voting-based-system-for-ethical-decision-making/).
  • Miles Brundage, et al., “The Malicious Use of Artificial Intelligence,” University of Oxford unpublished paper, February 2018.
  • John Markoff, “As Artificial Intelligence Evolves, So Does Its Criminal Potential,” New York Times, October 24, 2016, p. B3.
  • Economist , “The Challenger: Technopolitics,” March 17, 2018.
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Good How Would I Change The World Essay Example

Type of paper: Essay

Topic: Environmental Issues , Media , Development , Environment , Life , Belief , Emotions , World

Published: 03/08/2020

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Every day we hear the stories like how this world is ruining due to poverty, violence, hunger, pollution, global warming, etc. We see people’s sufferings, and it seems like there is no strategy to fix these problems. This world is ours, and the problems here are also our problems so I think everyone should contribute to making this world a better place. But the question here is what will be mine contribution to this change or how would I change the world. So, I have some simple ways and by following them, I can make a positive change. The first step that I would take is to change my perception about the world. We all are surrounded by negative thoughts and feelings. Moreover, media have portrayed an ugly image of the world where there is evil and no good. Therefore, I will change this perception and stop indulging myself in the ugliness that media tries to throw at me. Rather, I will try to inspire myself from the beauty, compassion and goodness of the world. I will also adopt a positive approach and inspire others by my positivity. It is rightly said that to change the world you have to change yourself. When I change my way of thinking then it will change my feelings and my actions too. I start seeing the world with different thoughts and feelings then ultimately I will be able to take those actions that could not be taken before. As a result, the world around me will change. Another way by which I would change the world is helping the people in need. I would do some volunteer works like cleaning parks, feeding hungry, helping orphans and organizing local charity events. There are plenty of charity works that anyone can do by donating less time. I know little efforts can change people’s life dramatically so I will help people as much as I can. Moreover, I would inspire others and encourage them to help the needy. The world can also be changed by speaking up against injustices, inequalities and illegal practices. If I find any issue that concern me, I will sign petitions or write letters to the members of the parliament to show my concern. On the other hand, if there is anyone who treats someone badly then I will not stay quiet. Because staying quiet means, you are encouraging people who are bad. No matter injustice is done by a person, a company or a government. I will speak against injustice to bring change. In addition, the world is facing serious problems like pollution and global warming. These problems are detrimental for the world and mankind. I will stop polluting the environment and try to be as ecofriendly as possible. I will keep my environment clean and plant a garden in my house. I will save the environment by saving energy, saving water and recycle. These small steps can contribute a lot to save the environment and change the world. Persistency and belief are crucial in bringing any change. I would change the world with my persistence and the belief that I can make a difference. Gandhi said that be persistent in your life. Because when you are going to change something, people will first ignore you, and then laugh at you, will fight with you and finally you will win (Edberg, 2014). So, constant efforts and belief is necessary to change the world.

Works cited

Edberg, Henrik, 2014. Gandhi’s Top Ten Fundamentals to Change the World. The Positivity Blog. 2010. Web. 4 October. 2014. http://www.positivityblog.com/index.php/2008/05/09/gandhis-top-10-fundamentals-for-changing-the-world/

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